The “food voucher” will not finally appear as a measure term in the law on purchasing power which must be presented after the legislative elections. After several days of uncertainty about the aid envisaged in the face of the inflationary context (+4.8% in food prices in one year according to INSEE), the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, confirmed at the microphone of France BleuTuesday, June 7, that the government would opt for a two-step system: aid to precarious households to cope with inflation, which would be paid at the start of the school year, “directly to the bank account, all at once” ; then the government would launch “a reflection on a targeted device to allow all French people to access quality products, organic products”.
A proposal resulting from the citizens’ convention on the climate, the establishment of a sustainable food voucher continues to be rejected by the government. When receiving the work of the convention, on June 29, 2020, President Emmanuel Macron was nevertheless enthusiastic, even citing this proposal at the top of those he ” wish[ait] see covers » : “You offer food vouchers to allow the most modest to buy quality products, of this agriculture that you want to transform, of this agroecology whose promotion you want to accelerate: you are right”he said.
Alas, a few months later, the measure does not appear in the climate and resilience bill initially presented by the government. She just slips into this text by the vote of an amendment requesting the submission to Parliament of a feasibility report within six months. While several inter-ministerial inspectorates – the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs (IGAS), the General Inspectorate of Finance (IGF) and the General Council for Food, Agriculture and Rural Areas (CGAAER) – have conducted a joint mission in the fall of 2021, hearing several actors in the food aid and agricultural sectors, their report was never published, contrary to what the law required.
On January 18, at the National Assembly, Julien Denormandie, then Minister of Agriculture, conceded: “Yes, the food check is something very relevant and very useful, but it is complex to know what the right scenario is. » The high inflation following the conflict in Ukraine has recently put this instrument back in the spotlight, Emmanuel Macron pledging to make it one of his first measures for purchasing power.
You have 62.33% of this article left to read. The following is for subscribers only.