La Volaille preferee des Francais

It's always good to see men digging holes and this time it was young farmer Oliver and his cousin that was trying to find the leaking irrigation pipe. As in the UK, France is very dry and the Sarthe region was already irrigating. Oliver is 21 and after completeing an Agricultural diploma has just started to farm with his parents (Marie-Armelle et Pascal LELIÈVRE) and has a 10% share in the family farming company. When another cousin and uncle had land for sale he managed to buy 20ha and rent an additional 30ha and this he has bought into the busines which now totals 180ha of wheat, rape, maize and sunflowers as well as a small herd of Limousin cattle to graze the river pastures and two houses of free range chickens (4000 per house 3 batches per year). Oliver hadn't taken up the government young farmer assistance to buy the land and grant scheme as he is hoping in the future that more land and maybe a house would be available nearby. Land in this area, like a warm Cambridgeshire, is around 3000 - 4000 euros per ha, much is irrigated but the farm owned very little equipment, relying on the machinery ring for everything except the tractor. Grain was all marketed through the co-op. The farm also had a Gite and a small B&B business. The same as most businesses I have visited, Pascal plans to get larger and specialise, Oliver is earning equity in the farm business while doing other work for a neighbouring relative to have an income to live on.

The chickens really interested me and I was expecting something exceptional as they have a protected geographical indication (PGI) . This is a EU legal definition of where they are produced and how, similar to the status Cornish pasties has recently gained. Label Rouge was developed for poultry through a collective, regional approach involving a region’s entire production sector, from poultry farmers to processing plants. The production of Label Rouge traditional poultry is thus deeply rooted in the French regions.To emphasize the importance of regional farming traditions, most Label Rouge poultry is identified by a PGI (Protected Geographic Indication), protected by a European patent. Currently there are 31 PGIs for poultry. They provide the “local touch” with a reassurance of guaranteed origin for those who eat the products and the promise of a special flavor that is very typical of each terroir.
The producers of “Loué” began to rear poultry under “Label Rouge” conditions in 1958. Actually, about 1000 farmers produce 28 millions of poultry and 160 millions of eggs per year and there are 150 different references of products from the whole carcasses to process products. It's not just chickens, but eggs, turkeys, ducks, geese and Guinea fowl all produced in an area near Le mans, spending some time free range, slow grown and fed local feed that has 80% cereal in. All the poultry are tagged for traceability, with a small metal tag applied at 4 weeks on the top of the wing. The chicken breeds can be all types including the funny naked neck birds and a bird similar to a hubbard. At Le Fresne they were grown to 90 days and free range for 7 or 8 weeks. they were in groups of 4,000 in fixed housing and had extensive ranges with good pasture cover. So pretty much exactly the same as the free range birds in the UK.
Asking a few french folk I met about Loué chicken it seemed a recognised brand that stood for quality and taste. I tasted a few as well and for a free range chicken they were pretty good, not anything exceptional with pretty much uniform taste on breast and legs (we strive for a differance between the white and dark meat). But the power of marketing is impressive with the Loué sign on farm gates and a great pride amoung the farmers that the regional chicken was the best, even driving down the motorway a sign anounces that you are entering the land of chicken and egg farmers.
In the UK, especially in the South West there has been a great revival of food provenance and interest in all things local. If We farmers could capture some of that French pride in what we are producing and market together maybe in future travelling along the M5 near Cullompton you would be greeted by a giant chicken or signs announcing that Devonshire really does produce the best poultry in the world.

Chambres D'Hotes

I'm starting to like the French and France. It helps the weather is good, I'm staying in the Sarthe valley which is about 2 hours west of Rennes an hour north of Angers and fairly near Le Mans. Nobody else seem to be here on holiday and I have the pleasure of empty roads and cafes and although they don't like to admit it the tourism generally is quiet and like the UK a general slow down of the economy seems to having an effect. It is an area of 'cites de caracteres' (pretty villages), slow moving rivers and streams and huge abbeys.
I am starting to admire the French National pride in all things french and how they are convinced that their food is better. All the villages are clean and tidy with immaculate carparks (all free) with well signposted facilities, the southwest tourist industry could certainly learn a lot.

And french B&B I love it, remembering my brief career (5 years) running a B&B on the top of Exmoor how I love the idea of:

• nobody expects a cooked breakfast, bread and jam is easy and when it goes stale just toast it or dip in your coffee.
• nobody expects good coffee, cafe or lump it.
• evening meals can be 5 courses by serving everything seperately.
• saving on washing up, one knife and fork for every course is fine.
• plenty of wine with the said meal and nobody will remember what you served.
• Sunshine means happy guests after a week of wet cold days on Exmoor even the most hardy guest can feel disapointed.
• more sunshine especially for drying that washing, try keeping sheets on the line on Exmoor let alone getting them dry.

Farming in France, might be tempted!

On the Buses.

On my list of things to do to be a traveller is a train ride across India, but as my travelling companions are not so keen and time is short it looks like I won't tick the box this time. To make up for this, although the taxi's are very cheap I opted to take the bus from Siem Reape to our next desination near Kampong Cham. Asking around came up with a time of everything from 3 hours to 6 hours and a lot of shaking heads about where it was and if it was worth going to. Always keen to please the bus was defiantely booked, you can have a 7.30am, 8.30am or 9.30am. Being on holiday it seemed a good idea to book the 9.30 and after a bit of confusion as the hotel had run out of tickets the bus arrived at 9.30. After a trip round Siem Reape we then arrived at the bus station where the 9.30 bus became the 10.30 bus that left at 11.10, loaded with sacks of fertilizer (I think), furniture and many children. After a stop for diesal we were off and I was congratulating myself on taking the scenic route, after many stops for water for the engine, the driver to buy sunglasses and dropping of sacks of various produce we stopped for lunch. This was possibly the dirtiest lunch stop with plastic everywhere. In the 'scare the tourist silly so they think it's a lonely planet' guide book it suggests that if you get took short don't leave the grass verge in case there are landmines and the cambodians certainly take this seriously. Even I declined to try any lunch. We finally banged and bumped into Kampong Cham around 4pm and gratefully relaxed in the comfort of a tuk tuk, that if driven flat out is better than any air conditioning. Too late to have the farm visit planned but having seen a snapshot of rural cambodia with a karyoke soundtrack all for $8. (To find out about cambodian rice farming see the Farming Ladder blog).

So what about the rubbish, it was everywhere. Plastic and glass bottles have a value to collect, they use very little tins, paper can be used for compost but plastic bags seem to be the favourite way of wrapping anything from cooked rice porridge (breakfast) to juices drunk with a straw. It would certainly improve the enviroment if a value could be found for carrier bags or if the plastic would compost.

For a second time I was amazed by the patience of the people that sat without complaining on the bus and still managed to keep smiling, i'm not sure that I was.

Roll Up, Roll Up!

I have to admit it, I quite like farmers market. Not that I don't moan each week when I load up the car and leave kids still in their pyjamas. I like meeting customers, I like it when we sell lots and bring home piles of cash and I love being able to buy lots of fantastic food produced in Devon. I am not so keen when it's freezing cold and customers stay away, but you can't have it all.
Back before Elsa was born, we were working for an organic vegetable farm in Somerset and we were involved with the first English farmers market in Bath. Growing organic vegetables for the supermarket is a very tricky business, especially in a time when the big stores were just feeling their way with organic fresh produce. Week after week the reject rate varied widely and much produce was not acceptable for their standards. The first market, it was set up by an American lady with help from Bath council, we took £600 in a morning, paying a stall fee of £20 and selling mainly 50p cabbages that were out grades from those supermarkets. I think that must have been the high point of my market trading career!
Fast forward a few years and now Farmers markets are across the country, run very professionally and mainly a lot more than £20 to attend. But I can't help feeling that excitement has gone and it's not just because I'm getting old and cynical. Nowadays, if you pay £30 for a stall I would hope that the stall charge would be 10% of your takings, unfortunately food markets are suffering in the recession and often the cost of the stall will work out more than 10% and that is before you taking in the farmers labour standing all day trying to sell.
During my fab USA trip in September I had the chance to help Heidi at a local farmers market and at the Hudson valley Garlic Festival. The farmers market was organised by local farmers and was every Wednesday from June through to October. The pitch was $125 for the season, which works out around $6.25 a week (about £4). So although the labour cost was the same the pitch price is considerable less. I also visited an exciting busy market in New York with a wide range of exotic produce of great quality, even here the pitches were paid per season and were only equivalent to around £20 per week. During September and October there are a number of garlic festivals around the states. At Hudson Valley there 47,000 visitors in two days and a large 3m by 3m pitch cost just $125, selling Garlic Vinegar From The Josie Porter Farm I estimate the stall price was around 2.5% of the takings.
At the moment we are looking at events we are planning to attend in 2011, Exeter food Festival is a great fun event, with a footfall of 15,000 the a stand of 3m by 2.5m is £380. So to match Heidi's day out I need to sell £15000. Well it may be good fun, but on past experience I will struggle to sell that much and it's not just me. Asking around there is quite a bit of disappointment in the direct selling market, customers feel that the products should be cheaper but sellers costs are escalating. So how do they keep those costs down in the states? Well mainly by keeping the event companies out. Garlic festivals are run by groups of farmers that manage to make a small profit for efforts. In the UK there seems to be an industry running food festivals and markets then suddenly it is hardly better than selling to the supermarkets as yet another middleman makes a profit out the producer.
So hurrah the worm seems to be turning, (i hope) there are a number of festivals being organised by producers for producers, one being Eat The Devon Way at Dingle Steam Village, at only £60 for two days a successful event seems more achievable, I hope that customers will show their support.
So where else are we selling? Our local community produce markets really are the most fun. Just 2 hours from 10am to 12, all within 5 miles of home and at £4 per table which goes towards local funds it is a pleasant morning out that also generates great local sales. On a good day the stall costs are around 3.5% to 4% of the takings but as the money is going back into my community I am more than happy to pay. Mind you most of the profit is spent on Teign valley Bread,delicious local cheese, Farmer Luxton bacon, Jill's chocolate tiffin and of course bacon sandwiches. What better way to find out the local gossip, teach the kids how to count the change and get feedback when people tell you how much they have enjoyed their meat the previous month.
So for 2011 I'm booking up the festivals and markets, forgetting the supermarkets and not so ethical organic box schemes and going back to re find that excitement of selling good produce to an appreciative customer, Roll up Roll up.