French government helps poultry industry with €15m grant

France’s poultry sector will be receiving a grant of €15m from the government to help it tide over the effects of the European Union’s (EU) abolition of subsidies on the export of frozen chicken to third countries.

France minister of agriculture and food Stéphane le Foll said that the grant will be used by poultry producers and processors to improve the quality of their products, to make them more attractive in the exports market.

World Poultry quoted Le Foll as saying: "Since that decision, I’ve done everything in my power to help the poultry sector in my country, because I believe in its future and its potential. I think the two companies that are active on the export market, Tilly Sabco and Groupe Doux, have once again positive perspectives."

The Poultry Site listed Doux and Tilly Sabco among the companies to have benefitted from the scheme.

The EU completely stopped its export scheme dealing with frozen chicken in July 2013, after having cut it from €325 ($430) per tonne to €217 in October 2012, and then to €108.5 in January 2013.

France was one of the countries to receive the maximum amount from the scheme. The country received around €60m in 2012.

The abolition of the ban, however, hit the French poultry industry hard, with many processing facilities shutting shop. Many factories had to implement major job cuts.

Reuters had then quoted the EU Commission’s agriculture spokesman Roger Waite as saying: "(The) proposal to reduce export refunds for poultry was based on the market situation and, in particular, the high prices observed on the internal market, the foreseeable reduction in feed costs – soy, maize and wheat – and the positive and sustained trend of EU exports to third countries."

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Image: The grant from the French government will help the poultries that had been affected adversely after the EU subsidy ban. Photo: courtesy of khunaspix/freedigitalphotos.net.