The excessively mild temperatures have tripled cauliflower production in Brittany. This not-so-wintery weather is not encouraging consumption, and prices are falling. Supermarkets have issued a cauliflower overproduction alert and are urging consumers to buy French cauliflower.
Exceptionally mild weather
The French cauliflower sector is in crisis. Exceptionally mild weather conditions have led to a peak in production, with large volumes arriving on the market simultaneously. This situation has been exacerbated by overproduction across Europe and a sharp drop in the consumption of winter vegetables. As a direct result, a significant proportion of the volumes remains unsold, with cauliflower prices plummeting to less than 0.30 eurocents [0.35 USD] a piece.
© Mousquetaires LinkedIn
French retailers mobilize to support French cauliflower
In a joint press release, French retailers have announced their support for French cauliflower in response to Karine Le Marchand's call for them to mobilize. At the 2025 International Agricultural Show in Paris, Auchan, the Casino group, Carrefour, Coopérative U and Intermarché expressed their desire to work together in the face of agricultural crises. In a joint press release, they announced their support for French cauliflower. "The operations undertaken to raise consumer awareness will be stepped up across all our banners from the 20th of December, as a continuation of the actions already implemented. The cauliflower campaign is part of a joint initiative to set up a rapid alert system in the event of an agricultural crisis."
Measures already put in place include: increasing the volumes of French cauliflower listed, initial in-store promotion operations, price adjustments to share the value, as well as consumer information campaigns on the origin and seasonality of products.
According to Dominique Schelcher, CEO of Coopérative U, on LinkedIn, retailers are "calling on consumers to get involved! This weekend's little good deed: buy French cauliflowers, they are in oversupply. Exceptionally mild weather conditions have led to a peak in production, with large volumes arriving on the market simultaneously and a significant proportion remaining unsold. The situation is exacerbated by overproduction at the European level."
