Quality farm food in Europe: a possible alternative to the industrialised food market and to current agri-environmental policies: lessons from France

As consumer dissatisfaction with intensive farming systems and standardised farm products has grown, so has the demand for 'quality' produce emanating from alternative farming and marketing sectors. This paper describes one important quality food sector, namely 'vente directe' in France,'Vente directe' involves farmers selling their own produce directly, i.e. with no 'middleman', and is one means by which the demand for quality could be capitalised upon so as to support existing producers of traditional low intensity farm produce. The research shows that while there is unquestionably a sector of French consumers willing to support 'vente directe' by paying higher prices for perceived quality and confidence in their food, both demand and supply are too small to be very significant. Moreover, consumers within the sector are not always interested in farming practices, and often look no further than the marketing imagery for any evidence of a traditional low intensity farming system. An exception is the organic sector, where practices are clearly defined and clients often more discerning. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.