Wine, fruit, meat: the prefect carrying out inspections in a hypermarket near Montpellier

Le préfet de l'Hérault François-Xavier Lauch (2e à gauche) a accompagné les agents de la DDPP sur le contrôle à l'hypermarché Carrefour de Lattes. Midi Libre – SYLVIE CAMBON

Le gouvernement avait promis des contrôles : François-Xavier Lauch et les services de la répression des fraudes étaient ce mardi 30 janvier après-midi au Carrefour de Lattes. 

Ewa Mendra keeps smiling. The director of the Carrefour hypermarket in Lattes, near Montpellier, had not, however, planned in her diary for this Tuesday, January 30, the surprise visit of the prefect of Hérault, François- Xavier Lauch, accompanied by the director of the DDPP, the departmental directorate for population protection, Yann Louguet.

The impromptu control operation follows government announcements aimed at sending a signal to angry farmers. This Tuesday, state agents will inspect the wine section, the fruit and vegetable stalls, before going through the butcher's shop.

Fight against "francization" wines

The department heads are a little tense. "It is not a question of targeting one brand rather than another", assures the prefect. "We will carry out five such checks this week in the department. There are strong expectations from winegrowers, particularly regarding what is called francization, which consists of passing off foreign wines as French, by misleading the consumer. 

In the wine section, Daniel Hirschy and Nathalie Beau, inspectors, already notice a presentation which can be a source of confusion. Is this Cabernet d'Anjou, among the AOP wines and Languedoc wines, really in its place ? The small signs at the top of the shelf, colored red and yellow and decorated with An Occitan cross, are supposed in the minds of sellers to mark a separation between what is regional and what comes from elsewhere. Too much traffic "confusional" for civil servants. Which also wonder whether grapefruit rosé in a small bottle is really a wine…

Does grapefruit rosé have its place in the wine section ? An almost… philosophical question. Midi Libre – SYLVIE CAMBON

A white "End Bouquet" sold 1.70 €

But we especially focus on low-priced wines. This "Fin Bouquet", sold at… 1.70 €, is a white which boasts on the label of being "special shellfish". Its provenance from the European Union is only mentioned in small print at the rear.

Worse still, this red decorated with a castle on the label, with the words France on one side, European Union on the # 39;other. "The regulations require that essential information be on the same label, assures Nathalie Beau, the inspector.  "There, we will contact the wine brigade who will check the merchant". 

ℹ️ Conseils de nos agents de la DDPP #Hérault avec un exemple de pratique commerciale trompeuse [cf étiquetage sur une bouteille de vin] ⤵️

✅ la réglementation prévoit que toutes les informations essentielles (de l’embouteilleur et la provenance) doivent être sur le même champ… pic.twitter.com/oRUbSCFiuU

— Préfet de l'Hérault 🇫🇷 (@Prefet34) January 30, 2024

In the early produce section, agents talk about seasonality. At the end of January, the clementines of Corsica are over; the leafy fruits that we find can only be foreign. Phew, the labeling matches, the clementines are presented as Spanish.

No worries either for the Gala apples which are very French, despite a Portuguese crate. The agents ask the department manager for all the order slips. Ditto at the butcher's shop where tricolor labels appear in every corner of the windows.

The controller goes to the back, checks the chicken fillets and legs, and asks to be sent the slips for the last ten days. "Our administration works in a network, and we can ask another departmental service to go and check with a producer or a trader", explains Daniel Hirschy. 

The butchery department was also the subject of an inspection by the departmental population protection department. Midi Libre – SYLVIE CAMBON

The DDPP sometimes carries out joint operations with Customs, which will track traceability among traders. "We also monitor compliance with Egalim laws, adds the prefect, which guarantee good remuneration to producers, there can be verification of contracts, prices for normal sales periods and for promotion periods&quot ;.

During the year, the 60 officials of the DDPP of Hérault carry out around 2,200 checks.

Short circuits

The director of Carrefour Lattes (13,800 m2 of surface area and 450 employees) works with thirty short-circuit producers. Some approached the hypermarket, others were contacted by it. Ewa Mendra cites salads that come from Mauguio or Vic-la-Gardiole, fish from Sète, and local meats as well. Could this figure increase ? "Of course; we are open to that", assures the owner who nevertheless believes that the primary purchasing motivation of her customers remains the price.

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