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Fruit and veg prices tumble in France

Good weather and weak demand have sent fruit and vegetable prices tumbling in France this summer. However, one of France’s favorite edibles is poised to spike in cost.

Fruit and veg prices tumble in France
Nice weather has caused Fruit and veg prices to drop in France. Photo: David Flores/Flickr

If you enjoyed the mild spring this year, so did France’s fruit and vegetables farms,  which as a result of pleasant weather have churned out a bumper crop of produce this summer.

The overabundance has driven down fruit prices by 12 percent and that of vegetables by three percent, which is great news for budget conscious chefs and consumers in food-obsessed France.

Though it's not so great for farmers already struggling with the effects of the Russian trade embargo on certain European products. Moscow implimented the bans in response to western sanctions over the situation in Ukraine.

An average kilo of fruit came in at €3.34 this year, over €3.78 in 2013, according to a report out on Thursday from advocacy group Familles Rurales.

Some produce, especially types synonymous with summer like melons, lettuce, peaches and pears have plunged in price by up to 20 percent.  

The reason for the bounty of produce is mainly the weather. At the end of July, France Agrimer, which is responsible for keeping an eye on the markets for the Ministry of Agriculture, pointed to the “mild spring temperatures” when explaining the abundance.

Heavy competition between online retailers, which allow people to bargain shop without leaving home, has also led to lower prices. It’s a situation the national farmer’s union Federation Nationale des Producteurs de Fruits attacked in a press release.

“It’s not about selling more vegetables, nor more fruits, nor better meeting customers’ expectations, or making them happy,” the group wrote. “It is, in reality, an effort to make consumers believe brand X is the cheapest and to sell all the other products, which aren’t on special offer, at a higher price.”

But not all food prices are falling France. The chocolatey spread Nutella, of which the French are the world's second largest consumers behind the Germans, may see its price go up. A disastrous hazelnut harvest is posed to push up the cost of making the chocolate spread.

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FOOD AND DRINK

Cheese in numbers: France’s obsession with fromage

From cheese types to the amount eaten per year, via cheese favourites - here's a look at how France really feels about fromage.

Cheese in numbers: France’s obsession with fromage

March 27th is the Journée nationale du fromage in France – so here are a few facts about the delicious dairy delicacy.

246

Charles de Gaulle famously once asked of governing France: “How can anyone govern a country with 246 varieties of cheese?”.

His numbers were wrong. Producers in France make closer to 1,000 varieties of cheese – and some have estimated that figure could be pushed up as high as 1,600.

8

The number of cheese ‘families’ in France. A good cheeseboard in France is generally considered to consist of at least three ‘families’ – a soft cheese, a hard cheese and either a blue or a goat’s cheese. Remember, too, an odd number of fromages on a platter is better than an even number, according from cheese etiquettists

READ ALSO France Facts: There are eight cheese families in France

2.5

About how long – in years – it would take you to try every cheese made in France, if you tried a new variety every day. Life goals. 

95

The percentage of people in France who say they eat cheese at least once a week, spending seven percent of their weekly food bill on it.

READ ALSO Best Briehaviour: Your guide to French cheese etiquette

40

Two-fifths of French people say they eat cheese every day

57

The amount of cheese produced, in kilogrammes, in France every second, according to this website, which has a counter to show you how fast that really is. It’s estimated that 1.8 million tonnes of cheese are produced in France every year.

27

The French consume, on average, a whopping 27 kilogrammes of cheese per person per year.

READ ALSO Fonduegate: Why customer service is different in France

3

The three most popular cheeses in France, based on sales, are Emmental, Camembert, and Raclette – followed by mozzarella, goat’s cheese, Comté and Coulommiers.

63

Some 63 cheeses have been awarded the Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée status, which means they can only be produced in a certain region.

1

France has – or at least soon will have – one dedicated cheese museum. 

READ ALSO Three things to know about the new Paris cheese museum

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