The best local producers Midi-Pyrénées

Gildas looks after the 12 hectares of trees on the estate, which has the particularity of straddling the border. Olive trees, picholine and picual share the limelight with very specific varieties such as argudell and rudunell. Each season 4 single variety oils are produced in fruity green and fruity black. Isabelle also makes a delicious olive jam, olive paste, table olives and small preparations. Facing the sea, the panorama is enchanting...

This vineyard turned to olives in 2002. The first olive grove was planted at that time, with the predominant varieties being the olive tree, the lucques and the picholine. In the following years, the plantations were continued and the varieties were enriched. Nowadays, there are also clermontaise, aglandau, cornicabra and amellau, a particularly interesting variety for confectionery with its typical rose taste. Three "French olive oils" are produced as well as table olives.

For 4 generations, Christophe Paradis has been perpetuating the family tradition of milling. In the mill and sales outlet, which is located near the road leading from Uzès to Remoulins, one can discover the secrets of the manufacture of oil in the old way and the stages of the elaboration of this essential southern product. The mill produces and sells a quality oil, monovarietal picholine, aglandau, bouteillan, négrette and oils of assembly like the sublime oil taste to the old, resulting from over-ripened olives. A visit which is essential.

The two oils of the domain (the vernal and the olive) are proposed in monovarietal: the verdale, in green fruity, and the olive, in ripe fruity. Thérèse and Christian have just won their 20th medal in 10 years with the olive variety: the gold medal at the Olivalies world competition. The secret, they confide it to us a little "to have a good oil, it is necessary to assemble the ripeness of the harvest over about 20 days". Soaps, condiments, tapenades and many other products are also on sale in the large shop.

Since 2004, the mill is installed in the activity zone of Milliaires. It specializes in olive oil from the Picholine variety and is certified organic. This olive from the Gard gives the olive oil an inimitable green fruitiness and ardour. The oil bar of the mill allows you to taste other Gardoise oils freshly pressed at the mill: AOP of Nîmes, etc... The shop also offers a wide range of regional products related to the olive tree

It was in 1997 that the union of olive growers of the Gard filed the request for recognition as an AOC for the olive of Nîmes and the olive oil of Nîmes obtained respectively in 2004 and 2006. From now on PDO, these appellations around the picholine olive certify a large part of the department as well as the communes of Herault. Nîmes olive oil stands out for its herbaceous aromas and its power. The Nîmes olive offers a crunchy taste that is much appreciated by gourmets.

The Sou mill, belonging to the CAVALE cooperative, produces and crushes 100 tons of olives from November to December. After the washing and crushing stage, the olives are carefully kneaded by the millers. The fruits from the olive, aglandau, picholine and bouteillan varieties are used to produce two extra virgin oils: the Olisoli intense taste, subtle taste and old-fashioned taste and the Olisancti Christmas oil. The products can be found in many sales outlets but also online at terroir-limouxin.com.

The site's 30 hectares are farmed organically, and ponies and horses ensure natural weeding. Next door, the estate store displays some twenty olive oils stored in stainless steel vats and bottled on demand. There are single variety oils (picholine, lucques, violette de Montpellier...) as well as flavored oils (mint, saffron, basil, truffle...). The boutique also sells olives, flavored vinegars, local products and olive oil-based cosmetics.

The organic farm is composed mainly of century-old olive trees and a young plantation of olive and redouneil varieties, typical of the Albères region. This family business produces only extra virgin olive oils, in fruity or ripe monovarietal. You must try their olive and fig chutney and the Oliv'gingembre preparation made from olives and herbs from the garrigue and ginger. A mixture where the flavours balance each other in an unexpected way. Discover the fruit trees on the property.

The words "heritage" and "transmission" take on their full meaning on this Tarn farm. Indeed, the history of La Métairie Neuve is linked to that of the Vernheres family, owners of the property since 1981. Today, the third generation is at the head of this quality production. Together, Jackie and Eric perpetuate the tradition, accompanied recently by their son, Frédéric. They produce Muscovy duck, roast duck and chicken, always with the same attention to quality, GMO-free products and animal welfare.

Right in the centre of Cajarc, the shop specialises in products from duck farming: foie gras, rillettes, confit etc. The history of fine gourmets began more than 20 years ago. Originally, 4 Lotois farmers who were passionate about their trade decided to join forces to control the entire production chain. From breeding to sales and product processing, everything is under the control of these professionals. Made in Lot works well and promises quality and respect for the product. A good address for gourmets and gourmands!

The Association des safraniers du Quercy gathers producers wishing to contribute to the development of the production of this spice within the framework of a quality approach. The saffron flower is cultivated, hand-picked (200 000 flowers for 1 kg of dry saffron), pruned and dried in Quercy according to an ancestral know-how. The association has then developed a wide range of products with Quercy saffron such as syrups or condiments. You can also find the association, the producers and their products during the saffron festival in Cajarc!

Awarded four times in 2011 for all its work, the Gaec Perarnaud is a quality farm. No doubt privileged by the Pyrenees natural meadows where this generous nature rich in flowers and other fodder herbs gives the meat this exceptional taste. This ecological agriculture is rightly rewarded by what is too rare. So bravo to the Pérarnaud family for its 1 st prize: Agriculture, Biodiversity, Landscape and Excellence. Do not hesitate, they sell their products from the farm and are welcoming as are all people in the mountain.

La Ruche qui dit Oui, the network that brings producers and consumers closer together, was born not far from the pink city in 2011. Today, it has nearly 1,500 hives spread throughout France and Europe. Toulouse is home to fifteen of them, including one located in the Hangar de la Serre, in the Patte d'Oie district. It brings together sixteen producers and offers more than 300 local products: fresh vegetables, canned food, bread, cheese, honey, soap, sweets... Order what you like when you want, and come and pick up your basket. This is an opportunity to exchange with producers! If you live in another neighbourhood, check the website: there must be a hive near you.

This family business initially specialized in olive oil production. Then, after the terrible frost of 1956, Emile Noël successfully turned to oilseed crushing. Thanks to a traditional, artisanal method, with slow, gentle extraction, the company's certified organic oils are known the world over, and have a large following. Today, the Emile Noël oil mill is reviving its olive-growing tradition with the acquisition of 300 olive trees in Spain. The organic store awaits you for direct sales and more.

Grown naturally without fertilizers or pesticides, saffron draws its precious aromas from the 900 m altitude. If the fields of flowers of the saffron field are incredible, the farmers will tell you the history of this atypical spice and especially the thousand and one ways to enjoy it. Whatever your recipe, remember to infuse it in water, wine or cream... one day before cooking, these purists and lovers of the land will explain. A visit as playful as it is instructive. And we end the visit with the shop and its many products.

Maurice Guillaume and Patrick Lesgards have been transforming fruits and berries into jams and jellies for 20 years. Blueberries, raspberries, redcurrants, blackberries are their favorites, but they have extended their range and know-how to many other fruits. They have also made a specialty of daring chutneys, to accompany foie gras, cheeses and grilled meats. The "apricot and cumin madness" accompanies cheeses with a bloomy rind, while you can opt for the "cranberry-red fruit" on a fresh cheese, or the "black cherry and licorice" on a sheep's milk cheese.

For more than 100 years, the Biscuiterie Deymier's production of scalded biscuits has been elaborated in a small family workshop, where each cookie is unique, shaped by hand, before being poached in hot water and then baked. Charles Deymier decided to rework the traditional recipe of these aniseed cookies in his own way by adding sugar, which he patented under the name "Charlot" eleven years later. Notice to all the gourmets: you will be able to find Marie, Véronique and their delicious cookies on the fairs and markets of Ségala!

Dominique and Jean Bardou opened their store on the banks of the Canal du Midi, but their 4,200 olive trees, 16 hectares of trees planted in 1957, with varieties of lucques, moncita, picholine and olive tree, are located 25 km away. Jean takes pleasure in making people taste his preparations, giving tours of the mill, as well as looking for original containers for his oils. Enjoy an initiation by appointment and finish with a tasting of the wines of the domain. They also offer cosmetics made from their olive oil, go and discover them quickly!

Five kilometres from Bellegarde, the Domaine du Haut Broussan is a 9-hectare olive-growing estate worked with love, fervour and respect by Murielle and Florian Monnier. Once ripe, these olives will produce a fruity and golden oil, which can be found in the restaurant overlooking the lake. In the middle of the 3,000 olive trees, the table of this restaurant is authentic and simple. Everything is fresh. Florian takes care of the grilled meats and Murielle composes generous salads served with a homemade tapenade that leaves a lasting impression.

There's no point in running, you've got to eat "local" could be the punchline of this gourmet, vitamin-packed address, which also serves as a sales outlet. The establishment federates producers from the Gorges du Tarn: farmers committed to "practices that respect nature and traditional processing methods". In addition to the wines of the Côtes de Millau, this small clan offers all the gastronomic riches of the Causses: charcuterie, fruit - including the famous cherry - cheeses... So you can fill your shopping bag with authentic products.

Sébastien Londres, a horticulturist from Laymont, has teamed up with other farm producers from the Savès region, close to his farm and already grouped together as part of Mamounette's farmers' markets, to open this pretty producers' grocery on the first floor of a historic house in the center of Lombez, opposite the media library. You'll find duck products from the Bassetto farm in Monblanc, vegetables, herbal teas and Cindy's jams, honey, soaps, artisanal products, and lots of goodies and good cheer.

Arnold Marcillac uses 4 ancestral methods to preserve mushrooms: air or sun drying with 15 varieties to be discovered in powder and broken pieces; confit with notably cep confit with Armagnac; mushrooms cooked in olive oil to be enjoyed cold or hot, from the aperitif to the cheese; and finally roasted with salt. On the fresh mushroom side, we are not disappointed with truffles, which can be enjoyed free of charge every day when the black diamond season starts. Originality and flavour guaranteed.

If the mushrooms are from Paris, the first farm in France to produce them organically is in Madiran! With more than 700 kilos per week, the workers of this medico-social establishment, for people with disabilities, have green thumbs! The first to have put the mushrooms of the ASEI association on his menu is the triple starred Landes chef Michel Guérard. This reassures on the excellent gustatory quality of these buttons of mould which bloom on a natural compost, without chemical fertilizers, in the cellars naturally maintained at 17°.

Since 1981, the Marquisat house has specialized in products from the South-West. This cannery is specialized in canardises, meaning duck-based products, and has built its know-how on foie gras. Among the range of products: pâtés and terrines, ready-made meals, fresh products and of course gift boxes. You can find these preparations in the cannery's store but also on the region's fat markets. Smart info: to renew your stock, think of ordering on their website!

Here, local producers come to sell their produce, offering an opportunity to exchange ideas and even make an appointment for a visit to the farm. Vegetables are delivered every morning, meat once a week, and bread and fruit three times a week. Products on offer include vegetables, fruit, meat (pork, lamb, veal, poultry, etc.), fish, honeys, jams, olives and olive oil, breads, eggs, fruit juices, wines and cheeses.

Chafiol Guilhem is a foie gras producer.

Located in the Regional Natural Park of the Causses du Quercy, the Ferme-Auberge d'Esparnol is home to a Gascony black pig farm. Run by Angélique and her team, it offers typical local products in the store as well as in the restaurant, which is only open in the evening: treat yourself to foie gras, duck breasts and legs, duck breast... Angélique has at heart to respect the traditions with natural recipes. The visit of the farm allows you to discover the know-how and to appreciate an authentic place.

The 5th generation has taken over the biscuit factory with its 35 old recipes. Crunchy almond biscuits, walnut cake (PDO Périgord), chestnut bites... Without colouring, with a flour from the Lot and walnuts from the Périgord PDO, the Delfour family offers us a quality of yesteryear that can be discovered in their museum shop. Without forgetting the Maryleine, the flagship product of the house with its unique taste whose secret of the family recipe is passed down from generation to generation.

Excellence and refinement are the watchwords of Maison Duler. Matured in the heart of the Quercy Blanc countryside in the Lot department, Patrick Duler hams (voted "Best Ham in the World" in Barcelona) are renowned for their incomparable taste and quality, the result of unique know-how. Maison Duler is also a foie gras artisan and truffle breeder. You can find their exceptional products in their online store or directly at the estate.

L'Olivène's olives come from their own olive trees. As soon as the fruit reaches maturity, it is harvested and immediately sent to the Cali mill, where the olive oil is extracted using a cold mechanical process. Most of the work is done by hand, by the owners, using organic methods. Picholine, the Gard olive par excellence, is grown here, along with other varieties such as Negrette. This is a "Sud de France" certified product. Alice and Barbara sell their products at markets throughout Provence. Olives, tapenades, everything is homemade.

Romain Biscan, the founder of this craft micro-brewery, learned the subtleties of his craft from brewmaster Frédéric Sannier. In 2014, he launched the business with the support of several regional and local players. Since then, backed by Guillaume since 2016, he has developed a wide range of 8 beers: white, amber, blonde, peaty or IPA. Many restaurateurs in the Gers have been won over, and are now offering them on their menus. You can visit the brewery to discover the subtle art of dosing hops, malt, yeast and water.

The Lau is a charming village, which forms the heart of the municipality of Magnas, where castle and church are isolated. Mr. and Mrs. Brenta welcome you in their beautiful property, to get you to visit the facilities and the cannery of their poultry farms. They will explain to you what is feeding corn to corn, and how to cook the duck in Gascony. The visit will conclude with a direct sale, where you can acquire bold gras, candied, among other specialities… Each year they organize a large market on the farm, with country meals, the closest Saturday to the Fête de l'Assomption.

Céran is a charming small village, very quiet, just a few km from Fleurance. There is a large and large central place (it is amazing for such a small village!), which gives a splendid farm to half-timbered, with covered - quite typical and rustic. Next to the hotel you will find the Farmhouse de la Bastide, which sells its fatty livers, candied with duck and other dishes cooked all year round on the Tuesday morning market. You will see: Myriam and Laurent form a very nice couple!

In the heart of the countryside of Castelnau-Valence, four generations have successively transmitted their know-how, their passion and their love of the olive. Today, it is Célia Ribot who perpetuates the tradition and develops a range of generous and tasty olive oils. From the 1 800 olive trees of the domain, the picholine, emblematic variety of the department, the bouteillan variety, but also the négrette, the lucques, or even the aglandau enamel the parcels of the domain. Exclusively French, AOP and Nîmes varieties are produced.

Jean-Luc and Eric Bergé are producers of fruit and vegetables: asparagus, melons, tomatoes, squash, artichokes, pears... Their produce is varied and is sold in their shop along with that of over 90 local producers. All the specialities of Aude agriculture and breeding are represented. The opening of the 1st Drive Fermier Audois by these producers allows you to place your orders online and to collect them from the shop or from one of the other collection points.

As in Bashung's song, Thomas is a happy farmer, and he claims it. He has 240 hives spread throughout the department in order to experience the influences of the sea or the mountains. He obtains very varied honeys: lavender, garrigue, rhododendron, maquis, etc. The cold extraction with the centrifuge allows to keep all the virtues and the best aromas. Let's not forget the production of honey vinegar, propolis or the inevitable gingerbread. Many beautiful things to discover and taste.

Christine cultivates her beautiful trees on 7 hectares on the heights of Laroque. This agri-silviculturist, as she defines herself, aims to enhance the ecosystem, so her orchards are neither irrigated nor treated. Just look at the soil at the foot of the trees, the grass is growing! Everything is done according to the rules of the art and the result is an inimitable taste! "The almond is a fruit rich in iron, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus and vitamins, and above all it contains no sugar and fights cholesterol," she confides. A real alicament to be rediscovered.

In Fenouillet, one of the most beautiful villages of the department, at an altitude of 550 metres, Le Rucher de Flora is a family farm with 250 beehives. Stéphanie and Frédéric practice transhumant beekeeping, that is to say that they move their hives according to the flowering season to obtain diversified honeys. During a visit, you will discover a wide variety of honeys, but also a gingerbread whose manufacture is inspired by an ancestral recipe called "Couque de Dijon". Come and meet them, they are fascinating!

In the heart of the old village of Eyne, Amandine and Aurélien welcome you to their little shop in the honey house. You will of course find their honeys (our preference goes to the mountain honey - rhododendron) and the products of the hive: propolis, soap, comb honey... Very committed to the environment, they will tell you why it is necessary to save the bees and stop using pesticides at all costs. Less resistant than militant, this couple in love with the region (the valley of Eyne is one of the most beautiful of the Pyrenees), travels the markets of the region.

It is in this cereal farm belonging to the Bareil clan that these original pasta products are made with lilting names: cresta, dentèla, virona, cauquilha or camba de blat. On a base of stone-ground flour, the producers have fun with art and greed to model names, shapes, colours and flavours around the ancestral wheat: golden yellow, coral red or English green pasta, the tastes of tomato, beet, spinach or basil dance in your basket. For individuals or professional distributors.

Jean chose the Toy country to raise his bees and two very specific sites house his hives: one in Lourdes for the production of chestnut honey and the other in the Luz valley for four typical honeys: heather, mountain wildflower, lime and rhododendron. The beekeeper will show you around his honey house. From the hive to the jar, you will learn everything about the honey circuit. It is instructive and fun, thanks to the exhibition of a hive visible through a glass window. Meet Jean on the markets of Luz, Monday and Friday.

Passionate about the land and its history, Elena Anton divides her time between her truffle field of 1,350 oak trees, her olive grove and her authentic gites. On her farm, she offers her products for sale in her small store, as well as local products such as salt with Gruissan truffles. She also offers educational activities. As for the gites, nestled in a coomb, in the middle of holm oaks and olive trees, they are classified 3 or 4 ears of corn and can accommodate 4 people each. All of them are built according to eco-environmental standards.

The Odyssey of the Olive Tree, within the Oulibo cooperative, combines staging, sound and light, educational tours, multimedia screens, sound effects... to discover the king tree of the Mediterranean. The 1h30 visit begins with the olive grove, then a sound and light show that retraces the stages of oil production will be shown. If you want to know the different virtues of the oil, the symbolism of the olive tree, the jobs related to the olive (scourtinerie...), this is the place to go.

Red roses, yellow roses, apricot-mint, shallots and onions, rosehips or mirabelle plums, strawberries, rhubarb and raspberries... Naomie Morez-Pons puts magic in her jars of jams made at the foot of Montségur. Subtle combinations make up her chutneys and confits. Passionate about fruit, especially in pasta, but also in jams, jellies or compote, Naomie cultivates, picks, assembles and concocts in a traditional way fabulous mixtures: nettle pesto, Chardonnay jelly or red wine with spices...

The temple of Catalan specialities! Sylvain Hénoc, trained at the Ferrandi School, offers you the creations made from the laboratory adjacent to the shop. You will find the unavoidable Catalan Turrón made of honey, sugar and dried fruits, but also the Rousquilles with lemon and vanilla as well as the Panaillets, small balls of marzipan with pine nuts. Two other specialities are to be discovered: bougnettes and Toledo Bread, as well as classic pastries.

There are many reasons to push the doors of this shop. Buy a delicious foie gras of course. Taste the other "duck-based" specialities. Or simply put together a box of "home-made" products to make a nice gift. The shop, owned by the Douls family, is a real festival of irresistible flavours and has been perpetuating a tradition that goes back six generations of food professionals for thirty years. The company, named AFG - AF as in Auguste Fontanié, the grandfather - has indeed made duck its speciality.

La Belle Chaurienne is aptly named. Established since 1964 in Castelnaudary, it is the main spearhead of the local gastronomic know-how. In addition to its famous cassoulet, the company has developed various recipes that showcase local cuisine. The ingredients for its preserves (duck confits, foie gras, pâtés, rillettes...) are 100% natural and carefully selected. Products that can be found in many food shops as far away as Hong Kong, as well as on the online shop.

Here, we raise poultry and palmipeds according to tradition. Of course, it is the ideal place to order chickens, ducks and guinea fowl to prepare your festive meals. But it is also the right place to stock up on products made from the king of palmipeds, the duck. From these products, fresh products are prepared, ready to cook and preserves: foie gras (semi-cooked, with figs, preserved...), fresh duck breast, stuffed neck, and prepared dishes (lentils with duck legs, garbure, beans, cassoulet...).

Corinne, Philippe, Stéphane and Charlotte raise beef and fat ducks in organic farming on their farm in Eyne, at 1,500 m altitude between Cerdagne and Capcir. This family of enthusiasts and epicureans is regularly quoted in the regional and national press, so much so that the conditions of breeding and the quality of the products are irreproachable. Cattle breeding is not limited to pure meat as these farmers had the idea of making charcuteries: veal cow sausage, dried meat... To be eaten without moderation.