Véronique Bouchard transformed her organic market garden farm in Mont-Tremblant into a solidarity cooperative for several reasons. Of course, in order to feed her community, but also to counter what she describes as a return to seigniorial rule in our countryside. Explanations.
Speculation on agricultural land in Quebec is worrying, explains the 43-year-old agronomist. “There is a financialization of agricultural activity,” she says. It’s made it so expensive! It is no longer possible to buy land and make it profitable with agricultural production. We are returning to a sort of seigneurial regime, where it is the richest who will own the land. »
Despite everything, the Ferme aux petits onions, a young solidarity cooperative barely a year old, is managing to do well. And here it is, multiplying its projects, including the opening of a café in the summer. shop, on his land on Chemin de Brébeuf.
Nearly half of its revenue comes from subscriptions to organic baskets (around 600 subscribers), but also from a small grocery store that the social economy enterprise operates along Route 117. Finally, the market garden sells its products at the Mont-Tremblant market, as well as to processors.
La Ferme aux petits onions produces around fifty varieties of vegetables. Obviously, varieties and volumes vary greatly depending on the season. From June to October, it’s the cornucopia.
It was in their early twenties, in 2005, that Ms. Bouchard and her then partner rented a piece of land to grow vegetables. They built buildings there and set up greenhouses, in addition to a small accommodation. In 2010-2011, the couple managed to purchase six hectares of land, becoming landowners. Since 2019, Véronique Bouchard has been the sole owner of the premises.
Faced with the difficulties and other risks of operating, as the sole owner, a market garden farm that produces on an annual basis, Ms. Bouchard turned to the cooperative model. She remains the owner of the land, but the business is now based on a model where one member equals one vote. “Other members have the same rights as me. At least they were kind enough to accept my candidacy as general manager,” she says with a laugh.
To become a cooperative, the Ferme aux petits onions was supported, in particular, by the Outaouais-Laurentides Regional Development Cooperative. She was eligible for financial assistance. “We also called on two appraisal firms and lawyers to properly supervise the transaction and do everything according to the rules of the art,” relates Véronique Bouchard.
Finally, reminds the entrepreneur, all cooperatives must follow the Cooperatives Act, that is to say produce an annual report to the members and to the Ministry of the Economy, Innovation and Energy, keep a general meeting of members, as well as submitting their financial statements to a review mission.
The Ferme aux petits onions model is intended to be “agroecological,” says Véronique Bouchard. “People adapt to what the farm can produce,” she says. We sell directly to customers. We bypass the intermediaries. We are like a collective garden, but on a very large scale. »
The mother of two children affirms that financing problems, lack of solidarity, in short generalized indifference to the agricultural crisis, threaten the sector. “During the pandemic, everyone was talking about food self-sufficiency and buying local. Not anymore ! People started traveling again and moved on. »
A solidarity cooperative allows us to better equip ourselves against storms and offers long-term prospects, supports Véronique Bouchard. “Our sustainability will be as much economic as human. We want to ensure our agricultural vocation for several generations. Setting up a social utility trust is in our plans. It is the best tool to protect yourself and exit the speculative market. »