Brittany Food Industry
Champion

A land of livestock, fishing and truck farming, Brittany is endowed with a substantial food industry. 

In Brittany, seven farms out of ten are dedicated to livestock farming, and the region leads France in terms of pork (56% of French production), veal (21 %), broiler (33 %), table egg (42 %) and milk (22 %)¹ production.

Led by the meat and milk sectors, Brittany has France’s largest food industry², in terms of both revenue generated – 12% of the total French food industry – and employment (58,700 jobs)³.

Although the domestic market is the main outlet for Brittany’s food industry, the Region sold €4.4 billion⁴ worth of agricultural and processed food products abroad in 2018. First comes meat (€1.5 billion), with Italy, China and Spain as the top three destination markets; then seafood (€1.5 billion) essentially for the European market; and dairy products (€873 million), particularly for Europe and Asia⁵.  

Endowed with a linear third of the French coastline, Brittany is also known for both its fishing industry and its vegetable production. 84% of the cauliflower produced in France is grown here, as well as 80% of the artichokes, and a third of the tomatoes⁶. 

To assist regional businesses in developing exports, the Region has both technical and regulatory advisors that provide a monitoring service for the food industries. It has also established a network of 144 service providers around the world, whose task is to assist Breton companies at all levels (prospection, contacting buyers, founding subsidiaries, and more).
Various subsidies are also available, including the “Export Comm Pass,” which contributes to financing communication campaigns in foreign languages⁷.

The Region also has policies supporting the development of sustainable farming, including aid for integrated crop-livestock farming systems that aim to reduce agricultural input for agro-ecological purposes. Altogether, €133 million in aid was granted to over 3,000 farms from 2015 to 2018.

Key figures of Brittany region

Brittany is the first food industry in France with a revenue of 19 billion euros, 12% of the French food industry’s total revenue.
Brittany is the first region for livestock slaughtering in France.
Brittany provides 56% of nationwide pork production and 33% of nationwide broiler production.
Brittany is the first producing region for market gardening :
84% of nationwide cauliflower production
80% of nationwide artichokes production
33% of nationwide tomatoes production
Brittany is the first French region for fishing.
Half of the nation’s seafood sales are made by Breton fishermen.
Brittany is the first French producer of organic milk and yogurt, 22% of national production and 33% of national production.

1 – Agreste, Bretagne agricole et alimentaire (Rural: Agriculture and Food in Brittany), 2018

2 – Source: INSEE (National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies), ESANE 2016 (provisional) – Processed by SSP

3 –  Rural: Agriculture and Food in Brittany, 2018

4 –  Source: Brittany Chambers of Agriculture, via the National Office of Foreign Trade Statistics 

5 –  Agreste Bretagne Les Cahiers régionaux, la filière laitière en Bretagne (Rural Brittany, Regional Notebooks: The Dairy Sector in Brittany), January 2018 

6 –  Source Agreste Bretagne « Bretagne agricole et alimentaire », (Source: Rural Brittany: “Agriculture and Food in Brittany”), December 2018

7 –  Up to 30% of expenses, $9,000 maximum