We wanted to extend our heartiest congratulations to Claire Tauty, Director of French association Echanges pour une Terre Solidaire. Claire was recently awarded the very coveted French state distinction of Chevalière de l’Ordre National du Mérite, which she received at this year’s Festival de la Terre Solidaire, an event taking place in Picardie, north of Paris!
Founded by Claire in northern France in 1997, Echanges pour une Terre Solidaire seeks to promote a healthier diet for all and make healthy eating more accessible to people. To do so, Claire and her association tackle four major challenges:
🌿 Healthy eating coupled to social outreach, especially important in this region of northern France (Picardie), where the unemployment rate is higher than the national average.
🌿 Healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle, again of particular relevance in a region where, in 2012, 20% of the population were suffering from obesity, a health risk that affects those in a socially precarious position the most.
🌿 Improved access to fresh produce, in a bid to allow everyone to consume fruit and vegetable products that meet certain standards, especially important in an age where industrial foodstuffs are becoming ever cheaper to obtain.
🌿 Reducing food waste, which is fast becoming a major concern in France, where 10 million tonnes of still edible foodstuffs prematurely wind up on the rubbish heap from one year to the next.
To combat all of these issues and work towards a healthier lifestyle for all, Echanges pour une Terre Solidaire has taken on the mission of helping to develop a more sustainable agricultural model. A model that is both healthier and more just, by respecting both the land cultivated and exploited for such purposes, as well as the people who inhabit it.
As part of its actions, in 2016, Echanges pour une Terre Solidaire raised awareness among 5000 students at both primary and secondary level, engaging them on the topic of seasonal produce and the necessity of consuming fruit and vegetables, thus promoting the benefits of a healthy diet all-round 🍎
With this in mind, we wanted to thank Claire once again for her commitment to this project over the past 30 years. A special thanks to her and her team for their promotion of a socially conscious approach to healthy eating, and one that is mindful of major issues like climate change, biodiversity and people’s well-being! 🌿🌏☀️
Local and organic, it’s a matter of life and death!