The Belgian vegetable and potato processing industry is raising alarms over new French sustainability legislation known as EGAlim 3 and its associated HVE level 3 (Haute Valeur Environnementale) certification. While the law’s goals—improving farmer incomes and preventing price wars among supermarkets—are not problematic in themselves, the issue lies in the lack of recognition for equivalent foreign certification systems. Starting in 2027, only HVE 3-certified products and a few national alternatives will be accepted in French public catering. According to Annelien Gansemans of FVPhouse, there is currently no operational procedure to recognize equivalent foreign sustainability certifications, creating an uneven playing field that contradicts the principles of the EU internal market.
This situation is already having real-world consequences, as French customers are reorienting their supply chains in anticipation of 2027, increasingly demanding that entire product assortments comply with EGAlim requirements. Belgian processors report that this leads to the abrupt and complete exclusion of non-certified suppliers, threatening oversupply, market distortion, and price pressure. FVPhouse, supported by Boerenbond, Fevia, and Vegaplan, is calling for a clear and enforceable equivalence mechanism for HVE 3. Until such a system is in place to guarantee a level playing field and legal certainty, the sector is requesting a postponement of the EGAlim and HVE 3 requirements to avoid irreversible economic damage to Belgian farmers and processors.
