“Our producers were not very involved in the legume sector. The FIBANI initiative enables us to get started, because there is real demand for chickpeas and lentils. Not only does this diversify our production, it also generates additional income,” says Nathalie Schenk-Trachte, manager of Producteurs d’Occitanie.
Based at the Montpellier Market of National Interest (MIN), this association comprises around twenty market gardeners and fruit growers from the Hérault department. It has committed to the “Filières à Bas Niveau d’Impact” (Low-impact Sectors, FIBANI) program, an initiative of Montpellier Métropole and its partners to help preserve agriculture in the territory by growing water-efficient and climate-adapted products such as legumes and robust grains (e.g. einkorn wheat, ancient wheat varieties).
With financial support from the Rhône Méditerranée Corsica Water Agency, this program began in 2024 with eight farmers, on 20 hectares of land located in an areas where there is a strong focus on the use of groundwater. INRAE contributed its expertise, along with the Hérault Chamber of Agriculture, CIVAM Bio 34, and OCEBIO.
Results: 7 tons of chickpeas, 5.8 tons of lentils, and 2 tons of einkorn wheat were harvested. The crops quickly found buyers thanks to the sixty or so companies and public institutions involved in the initiative. This includes Sud-Est Traiteur, Sodexo, Montpellier CHU, Crous Montpellier-Occitanie, Montpellier’s Central Kitchen for School Cafeterias, and dozens of other cafeterias in cities around the Montpellier metropolitan area, as well as Agglomération du Pays de l’Or, Hérault Departmental Council, University of Montpellier, representing a total of 80,000 meals per day.
Some of the harvested produce was served on December 2 and 3 throughout the school cafeterias in Montpellier, as well as at the Regional Conference on the Agroecological Transition and Sustainable Food 2024, held on those same days at the Corum Conference Center.
In addition, six collectors/processors have also made a commitment to the approach, including Producteurs d’Occitanie and Agriviva, the local vegetable processing company that handled the cooking of the legumes: “It was logical for us to join the FIBANI initiative because the project is a collective effort that makes sense, bringing together producers, processing companies, customers, chefs, and even consumers, both children and adults,” explains Laure Vidal, director of Agriviva.
In her opinion, it is an exciting program, especially since she has already had “very good feedback” from her customers. The good news is that FIBANI will continue in 2025. Other farmers will join the eight already involved. The objective for Montpellier Métropole is to keep agriculture in the area alive by committing to a responsible and fair approach.
