Caught in legal and relational imbroglios, the peasant Claire Guyon struggles to find land in and around her town of Vaux-et-Chantegrue (Doubs) to develop her small farm of cows and hens in transhumance. One of his appeals was judged Thursday, May 5 at the administrative court of Besançon.
She clearly and calmly explains every detail of her ongoing “business”. Claire Guyon is straight in her boots to tell her beginnings as a farmer in 2013, her modest-sized organic livestock farm designed for complete transhumance to the mountain pastures where she intends to spend four months of summer: a dozen dairy cows with cheese processing , calves whose meat is sold directly on the farm to avoid fattening centres, hens for eggs and potted meat, as well as broiler chickens.
But when she mentions her difficulties in acquiring or renting new land to increase her activity, the young woman strangles herself a little. “I do everything on my own: milk, process, sell, she lets out on the verge of tears. I am raising my 5 year old son, and I have to fight every day! I spend two hours a day in administrative procedures just to have a little more ground to live! I think that’s very unfair!”
Claire Guyon is not, however, unknown in the sector. Originally from Haut-Doubs, she was trained at the Granvelle agricultural high school in Dannemarie-sur-Crête near Besançon, and worked in several professions in the region, including that of shepherdess for 10 years.
In 2017, she bought the farm and half a hectare from her great aunt in the town of Chantegrue. Her uncle gives her 3.7 hectares, and she rents 5 hectares on the edge of the town. The municipality of Vaux-et-Chantegrue told her in 2018 that if she wanted to rent an additional 5 hectares of communal land, dry lawns for grazing, she would have to wait for the transfer of an activity. What happens in 2019.
But, surprise for Claire Guyon, the municipal council decides to entirely re-let the 43 hectares of municipal agricultural surface to the successor and former apprentice of the newly retired, who is at this time belonging to the municipal council. No mention of Claire Guyon in the deliberations. The shepherdess does not know at this time that she can appeal the decision of the municipal council.
Claire Guyon will therefore make a request for “competition” to try her luck again in order to obtain the rental of a few hectares, only, out of the 83 hectares that her “rival” now has, a dairy cow farm in the County area. Indeed, French law and the regional master plan for agricultural holdings (SDREA) work in its favour. The SDREA in the Doubs considers that beyond 69 hectares, a farm is large enough and that any extension must be subject to an operating permit from the prefecture in order to avoid “farmer grabbing”. Clearly, that the big ones become too big to the detriment of the small ones and of diversity.
This is where things get a bit tricky. And takes a Kafkaesque turn for Claire Guyon. The prefecture, to decide to whom to allocate the land, classifies the competitors from 1 to 8. From 1 to 7, they are farm managers. The Renaud farm, Claire Guyon’s competitor, is classified as “Priority 3”. Claire Guyon, who at the time was not considered a farm manager by the MSA because it was too small (land less than 12.5 hectares) inherited a “Priority 8”, her category as a “contributor solidarity”. On the 3rd beats the 8th, the prefecture grants the exploitation of the communal lands to the Renaud farm.
The height of this story, Claire Guyon, being precisely not a farmer, did not have to apply for an operating permit, but for that it would have been necessary to agree directly with the lessor, which, we have seen previously, was not possible.
“It’s the fox biting its own tail, laments Claire Guyon. When you don’t have enough land, you can’t be a farmer. And when you’re not a farmer, you can’t claim to lands !”
It is therefore the decision of the prefecture of June 11, 2020 that Claire Guyon challenged and which was judged before the administrative court on Thursday May 5. The young woman considers that the prefecture should have considered her a manager, a status she obtained six months later from the MSA by valuing the hours of work as a trader of her products. The prefecture would then have given it a “priority” at least as good, or even better than the Renaud farm, so that it could expand, still in the name of the SDREA. If the decision of the prefecture is overturned, the rental can de facto return to Claire Guyon, given her change of status.
“Madame Guyon believes that the prefecture should have anticipated her change of status and awarded her a better ranking”explains Alexis Pernot, public rapporteur at the Administrative Court of Besançon. “From a moral point of view, and from the master plan, this is understandable. But from an administrative and factual point of view, it is not admissible. That is why in my conclusions, I recommend not not break the prefectural decree. We will see if the judges decide to follow me or not.” Answer in three weeks.
Pending the judgment, the municipality of Vaux-et-Chantegrue has made another proposal to Claire Guyon. Rent her 3 hectares of “deep marsh” on which she cannot put an animal before July 14. “Obviously, I declined, she said. It’s like asking a carpenter to move into the third floor without a lift.”
Claire Guyon has also applied for the Boivine mountain pasture, 22 hectares of useful agricultural area in the town of Rochejean, plus 33 hectares of woods, meadows and a mountain chalet. An ideal place for summer pastures. An amicable agreement had been concluded with the one who was leaving the premises, a Swiss woman. The SAFER (The Land Development and Rural Settlement Company) est favorable as well as the seller. But again, the city council voted unanimously against a rental to Claire Guyon. Since then, a series of appeals from the town of Rochejean and that of Labergement-Sainte-Marie have prevented the case from being concluded.
And Claire Guyon is in despair. “I don’t know if it’s my project or my person that poses a problem. It’s innovative and it disturbs. My values, my choice of life are different. And yet transhumance has been included in the intangible cultural heritage of the UNESCO! If I can’t carry out my agricultural and tourist installation project, I will have to repay the “young farmer” grant that I received, in addition to the loans to bring my installations up to standard. am cornered…”
Saturday, May 7, Claire Guyon, supported among others by the Confédération paysanne, the organic farmers of Doubs and the Territoire de Belfort, and Nature et Progrès, is organizing a press conference on her farm in Chantegrue. She announces “revelations on the underside of current affairs and a participative and demonstrative action of his installation project”.
