Paysage industriel laitier et dynamiques des aires de collecte : recompositions territoriales en Lorraine et Haute-Marne

Abstract

Researches on coexistence of agricultural and food models highlights persistent tensions within agri-food systems between production systems that on the one hand specialize and on the other hand seek to differentiate in order to adapt to a changing food demand. These tensions occurred at the level of intermediaries in dairy collection and processing and lead to different dynamics of firms' territories. This article proposes to analyze the implications of the coexistence of specialization and diversification logics on the spatial organization of milk collection in mixed cropping-livestock areas of northeastern France. The method used combines regional sources and interviews with supply managers of the most important dairy intermediaries in the Lorraine-Haute-Marne region. The results show that 70% of industrial sites have closed since the 1970s, in conjunction with a concentration of structures in major national groups. These changes are associated with two types of territorial recompositions of milk collection: the spread of milk exchanges since the end of the 1990s to rationalise logistical costs and a complexification of these exchanges linked to the spread of production specifications. Finally, the evolution of mixed farming areas towards a decrease in the number of dairy farms could disrupt supply and raises concerns about the future of the firms' territories.

Keywords

• firms’ territories
• coexistence
• dairy sector
• mixed cropping-livestock
• milk exchanges