France, 240,000 workers answer the Agriculture Minister’s appeal

In the space of a couple of weeks, 240,000 French citizens have responded to the appeal launched by Agriculture Minister Didier Guillaume to join the ranks of the great “agricultural army”.

“During the first four days we received more than 25,000 daily applications, then 10,000 and we are currently receiving 5,000 every day,” said Richard Buxant from WiziFarm, the startup that works alongside the “Des bras pour ton assiette” (Arms for your plate) campaign launched by Guillaume.

The appeal, aimed at citizens who have been laid off or who are on furlough, is intended to support a sector that has been severely hit by the closure of borders and has found itself unable to recruit seasonal foreign workers for harvests.

The 240,000 applicants will be more than sufficient to meet the estimated labour requirement of around 200,000 workers.