In the best “that’s not exactly what I meant” style, the global president of Carrefour, Alexandre Bompardpublished this Tuesday (26) a letter sent to the Brazilian government to “clarify” the criticism made last week to meat produced in Mercosur, in a context of intensification given the advancement of the South American bloc’s trade agreement with the European Union (as per we tell you here).
After the main Brazilian meatpackers imposed a boycott on Carrefour and suspending deliveries of meat since Thursday (21), which could harm the chain’s financial results in Brazil, the global CEO needed to speak out once again — and again by letter.
No seven paragraph textthe apology actually comes only in the sixth. Says Bompard: “if Carrefour França’s communication generated confusion and could have been interpreted as questioning our partnership with Brazilian agriculture and as a criticism of it, we apologize.”
With the rhetoric of “I am responsible for what I say and not for what you understand”, the executive seems to forget this part here, in the letter sent to French farmers last week, in which he cites the “risk of flooding the French market with meat that does not meet its requirements and standards”.
There never was a flood, since sales of Brazilian meat to France, for example, did not reach 1% of what our country exported this year, according to study from Safras & Mercado consultancy. And much less is there a technical or commercial argument for the dichotomy between French and South American meat that Bompard tried to put forward.
READ MORE: It has become routine: after Danone, Carrefour picks a fight with Brazilian agribusiness
In this Tuesday’s message, addressed to the Minister of Agriculture, Carlos Fávaro, the global CEO of Carrefour once again reinforced the argument that Brazilian meat is useful for its stores in Brazil, but that, for France, the story is different. “In France, Carrefour is the first partner of French agriculture: we buy almost all the meat we need for our activities in France, and we will continue to do so.”
The Ministry of Agriculture did not say either that it accepted or refused the apology, only said he won’t allow “erroneous statements” about food produced in Brazil.
Finally, Alexandre Bompard, recalls the five-decade roots of Carrefour in Brazil, the chain’s second largest country in terms of revenue, second only to France, and its 130,000 Brazilian employees – who have nothing to do with the uproar caused by its main executive. — and any investments made in Brazil, despite the company being in a process of reducing expenses since 2022, resulting in the closing of stores and sale of assets.
After the release of the letter, the Brazilian branch of Carrefour published a relevant fact stating that it is working “to resolve the situation with suppliers and expects supply to normalize in the short term to mitigate the impact on consumers”.
According to the chain, which also owns the Atacadão and Sam’s Club brands, since last Thursday (21) deliveries of beef to the group’s stores “did not occur as scheduled”. But, continues the retailer, “there has been, to date, no relevant impact on merchandise sales operations, given the product stock level”.
The Brazilian Association of Meat Exporting Industries (Abiec), which represents the country’s main beef slaughterhouses, stated that it received the apology — or “clarification”, in Bompard’s own words — with satisfaction and that it hopes that “the operations are reestablished.”
If you haven’t read it yet, here’s the full letter from Carrefour:
To the Honorable Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil, Mr. Carlos Fávaro,
Carrefour France’s declaration of support for French agricultural producers caused disagreements in Brazil. As CEO of the Carrefour Group and a long-time friend of the country, I respectfully come to clarify this.
Carrefour is a decentralized group with roots in each country where it is present, French in France and Brazilian in Brazil.
In France, Carrefour is the first partner of French agriculture: we buy almost all the meat we need for our activities in France, and we will continue to do so. Carrefour France’s decision was not intended to change the rules of a broadly structured market in its local supply chains, which follows the regional preferences of our customers. With this decision, we wanted to assure French farmers, who are going through a serious crisis, the continuity of our support and our local purchases.
On the other side of the Atlantic, in Brazil, we buy almost all the meat we need for our activities from Brazilian producers, and we will continue to do so. These are the same values of creating roots and partnership that have inspired our relationship with the Brazilian agricultural sector for 50 years, whose professionalism, care for the land and producers we know.
The Carrefour Brasil Group is deeply Brazilian, with more than 130,000 employees, it has developed and continues to develop under my presidency in partnership with producers and suppliers in Brazil, valuing the work of the production sector and always for the benefit of our customers. In recent years, the Carrefour Brasil Group has accelerated its development, doubling both the volume of its investments in the country and its purchases from Brazilian agriculture. More broadly, Brazil is the country in which Carrefour has invested the most under my presidency, which confirms our ambition and commitment to the country. In this way, we will continue to honor local production and actors and promote Brazil’s economy.
We know that Brazilian agriculture provides high quality meat, respect for standards and flavor. If Carrefour França’s communication generated confusion and could have been interpreted as questioning our partnership with Brazilian agriculture and as a criticism of it, we apologize.
Carrefour is committed to working, in France and Brazil, towards prosperous agriculture, following our purpose of food transition for all. I assure you, Minister, of our long-term commitment to Brazilian agriculture and producers. I take this opportunity to renew my expressions of esteem and consideration.
Yours sincerely,
Alexandre Bompard
Chief Executive Officer of the Carrefour Group
