The Food markets in Paris, a tasty pleasure !

Food markets in France

Non-sedentary commerce is considered the oldest form of marketing. Today, it attracts more and more shoppers who want to eat better or locally. Faced with this craze, a hundred or so markets are created each year in France under the impetus of local authorities who rely on their assets to revitalize their city centers.

This is the case of the city of Paris which, during the market festival held every year in September since 2016, puts its markets in the spotlight for four days through various activities. The market is part of a process of revitalization of the various districts of the capital and in the implementation of an urban project whose concept is based on the proximity of everything necessary for the daily life of Parisians. “Paris, the city of the quarter of an hour” was therefore the theme of the 2021 market festival.

According to a study on the socio-economic profile of food retailing on markets conducted in 2016:

– There are 10,683 food markets in France

– 6,490 communes have at least one food market, i.e. about three communes out of sixteen.

– 38,536 businesses sell food products on open-air markets in France.

– The distribution of sales is as follows: fruits and vegetables 35%, meat products 18%, dairy products 13%, seafood products 11%.

– 16% of traders are also producers (67% of the fixed locations of open-air food markets are held by itinerant traders who have neither production activity nor a sales outlet)

– 4.8 is the average number of days companies are present on the markets per week cities.

Pourquoi faire ses courses au marché ?

Why shop at the market?

• Fresh and seasonal products

Going to the market is first and foremost an opportunity to stroll! Strolling through the aisles of the market is a real pleasure. The smells, the colors, the atmosphere! At the market you feel good but what about the quality of the products? At the market, although some traders, in order to meet the demand, offer all year long tomatoes or avocados that the French love, you will find seasonal products of great freshness.

Indeed, at the market, we do not store unlike supermarkets where your fruits and vegetables will often remain several days on the shelf before ending in your basket! The market is the ideal place to find fresh fish. In fact, fishmongers mainly work in markets! The fish comes directly from the wholesalers of Rungis markets or it is bought directly from the fishermen.

Located 7 km south of Paris, in the Val de Marne, the Rungis National Interest Market (MIN) officially opened its doors in 1969, a few steps from Orly airport. A true showcase for French gastronomy, the Rungis market welcomes the best professionals in France.

It is still the largest market in the world! The Rungis market has a huge building dedicated to seafood, equipped to preserve the cold chain. Trucks from France and all over Europe arrive around 11:00 p.m. at night and buyers arrive at 2:00 a.m. to prepare their market stalls as quickly as possible! All the merchandise is therefore ultra fresh.

• Traceability of products

More and more producers are selling their products directly on markets. It is thus possible to know the place and the mode of production of the products that you buy. At the market it is possible to consume local products and to respect the seasonality of the products. The “local products” can also be distributed via “retailers”, that is to say fruit and vegetable traders who wish to specialize in the sale of local products, that is to say “produced in Ile de France” in the case of Parisian markets. Often, they often buy their supplies at Rungis at the “Carreau des producteurs”, a building that only welcomes producers from the Ile-de-France region. They arrive every morning around 4:00 am to sell their products harvested the day before! Once again, no no intermediaries, ultra-fresh products, sold on a daily basis.

• Quality products

The products found on the market, especially the meat, are not produced by the food industry. In fact, the majority of butchers and poulterers obtain their supplies either from Rungis Market during (opening hours of the meat pavilion 3am-8am, poultry and tripe 5am-8am) or directly from producers. Here again, traceability and product quality are guaranteed.

Here’s a reminder of the different quality labels you’ll find on many products on the market:

– The Label Rouge : The Label Rouge is a national sign that designates products which, by their conditions of production or manufacture, have a higher level of quality compared to other similar products usually marketed. The qualitý, in this case, refers to all the properties and characteristics of a product. Label Rouge is open to all products, regardless of their geographical origin (including outside the European Union). At all stages of its production and elaboration, the Label Rouge product must meet the requirements defined in a specification, validated by the National Institute of Origin and Qualitý (INAO). A Label Rouge foodstuff or product may also simultaneously benefit from a geographical indication.

– The PGI: The Protected Geographical Indication (“IGP” in French) identifies an agricultural product, raw or processed, whose qualitý, reputation or other characteristics are linked to its geographical origin. The PGI applies to the agricultural, agri-food and wine sectors. To claim this official sign, at least one stage among the production, transformation or elaboration of this product must take place in this delimited geographical area. For wine, all the operations carried out from the grape harvest to the end of the wine-making process are carried out in the geographical area concerned. The PGI is linked to a know-how. It is not created, it consecrates an existing production and confers to it a protection at the national but also international level. The PGI can be based on the reputation of the product, which is understood in the sense of a strong recognition by the public at a given moment, and which must be associated with a know-how or a determined qualitý attributable to the geographical origin. The rules for developing a PGI are set out in a specification and are subject to control procedures, implemented by an independent body approved by the INAO (National Institute of Origin and Quality).

– PDO and AOC: The Protected Designation of Origin (“AOP” in French) designates a product whose production stages are carried out according to a recognized know-how in the same geographical area, which gives the product its characteristics. It is a European sign that protects the name of the product throughout the European Union. The AOC (Controlled Designation of Origin – “AOC” in French) is identical but only on a French scale. The rules of elaboration of a PDO are written in a specification and are subject to control procedures, implemented by an independent organization approved by the INAO. It is the notion of terroir which is the basis of the concept of Appellations of Origin. A terroir is a particular geographical area where a production draws its originalitý directly from the specificities of its production area. It is a delimited Space in which a human communitý builds during its history a collective know-how of production, the terroir is based on a system of interactions between a physical and biological environment, and a set of human factors. Therein lies the originalitý and typicitý of the product.

– The AB label: Organic Agriculture is a production method that combines optimal environmental practices, respect for biodiversity, preservation of natural resources and the assurance of a high level of animal welfare. All along the chain, the operators involved in the organic production and transformation method respect a rigorous set of specifications which favors non-polluting processes, respectful of the ecosystem and of the animals. It is also a method of production that excludes the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and limits the use of inputs, giving priority to the use of natural and renewable resources within the framework of agricultural systems organized on a local scale, and strictly restricting the use of synthetic chemical products. There are four markets in Paris that offer exclusively organic products: the Raspail market (6th arrondissement), the Brancusi market (14th) and the Batignolles market (17th).

As you can see, choosing to shop at the market means choosing to consume differently, to exchange with the shopkeepers in order to better understand the products you are consuming and the work of those who produce them.

Shopping at the market is also learning how to choose your products according to your budget and the different quality criteria proposed. The market is also the seasons, the colors and the flavors. A place of exchange where precious links are often created. The market has it all and we hope to see you there!

See you soon on The Route des Gourmets!