France's Les Mousquetaires Group will not sell beef, pork and poultry from South American countries at Intermarché and Netto stores.
Les Mousquetaires also plans to eventually eliminate meat from Mercosur countries in its own-brand processed dishes.
The company added that it is currently working to develop a supply chain for raw materials to replace its ingredients.
Supporting French Agriculture
The initiative aligns with the retail group's recent measures to support French agriculture.
It has pledged to ensure more transparency on the origin and cost of agricultural raw materials and safeguard the income of those involved in the agricultural sector.
Les Mousquetaires is also asking manufacturers of national brands to offer the same level of support to the agricultural world, by changing the origin of their supplies and demonstrating greater transparency on the origin of the raw materials.
It has urged suppliers to go beyond mentioning 'EU origin' or 'Non-EU origin' as in previous instances.
Read More: Why EU Farmers Are Upset About Mercosur Deal
In a similar move, Carrefour stopped selling meat from Mercosur countries, a bloc formed by Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
In a letter published on social media, Bompard noted that the decision, which is effective immediately, is in solidarity with the agricultural world.
He noted that Carrefour is committed to not selling any meat from Mercosur countries, regardless of the ‘prices and quantities of meat’ that these countries may offer.
Bompard stated that the decision was made after hearing the ‘dismay and anger’ of French farmers protesting against the proposed EU-Mercosur free-trade agreement.
