My mission in the food industry was to work on feeding the French. We attacked pesticides, saying they cause cancer and are dangerous. But we haven't provided solutions. There is a path to create a new sustainable agriculture that is also competitive. Singapore, Sydney, Auckland, Tokyo, Los Angeles. And so you gained a day. That's globalization.
Sense and confidence. Thierry Blandinières. Hello Thierry.
Hello Jud. Welcome to my home. Thank you. Delighted. Very honored. With great pleasure.
So Thierry, you have a table full of food and objects. I want you to choose what you want – food, an object, or a drink to start this interview.
I'm not very hungry, but maybe I'll take the ball then. It's a rugby ball. I've been playing since age 6, until 26, and now as a director at Brive. Brive was European champion 30 years ago, now in second division, but we hope to go back up. The club has a great history.
Why did you take the ball?
Because I've touched it a lot in my life. From 6 to 26 on the field, and now as a director, always with the ball in my head and hands. Brive was the first European champion in 1997. The club is part of French rugby heritage.
So in your time, there was no professional rugby?
No, it was the 60s, 70s, 80s. Professional rugby started in 1995. It was amateur; we trained in the evening after working or studying.
If you could have been pro, would you have done it?
That's a big question. When I had to leave Brive to study in Nantes, the choice was between studies and rugby. But studies were necessary then. I'm not sure if I would have chosen professionalism because it didn't present itself. And I also enjoyed developing businesses.
So what else is your life? The seed, for example. Tell us about the seed. We can also talk about grapes.
Today it's about feeding people. Producing to nourish, because it's not easy. With wars and crises, we see food security is not a given. My mission at InVivo has been to feed the French with quality products in quantity at reasonable prices while being virtuous. Agriculture has become political. Ecologists attacked pesticides without offering solutions. If we stop treatments, we have less food. It's a matter of dosage. Pesticides are medicine for plants. We need a path to sustainable agriculture that is competitive.
So from the ball to the earth, it was an almost obvious path. You studied business but could have done many other things.
Yes, I started in cosmetics at Procter & Gamble. It was a great marketing school. Then I moved into agrifood. In 1989, I helped create the luxury food group Européenne de Gastronomie with brands like Labeyrie. I was a marketing director at 30, working on acquisitions and democratizing foie gras and smoked salmon while keeping premium quality.
Do you smell the corks? What does it inspire? It's a wine from Savoie, seven generations, Chiroubles. It evokes the history of the land and civilizations.
You feel the terroir, the character, and the winemaker's savoir-faire. The color is beautiful. There's plenty of quality wine in France. This is very good.
There's food on the table. Magret de canard with potatoes in duck fat. Missing ceps? Not the season. This is the Sunday family dish. Who made it? Your mother?
My mother and my grandparents. I lost my father young, so I was raised by my grandparents. Between Corrèze and Périgord, a battle between regions. The small ceps are the best.
Taste it with eyes closed.
It's very good. Tastes like my mother's cooking with potatoes in duck fat. A gourmet cocktail.
Being a good boss is also about anchoring. Do you agree?
I think you need to know where you come from to know where you're going. With 15,000 employees worldwide, when you travel, you enter their territory. Understanding your own territory helps understand others. Sharing gastronomy brings people together.
You've been around the world. Last time you said you went the other way: Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Auckland, Tokyo, Los Angeles, New York, Paris. You gained a day. Did you have jet lag?
I didn't have jet lag initially, but a rebound a few days later. It took a week to recover. Traveling is a way to discover cultures through food and habits.
I see you're trying to figure out what this is. It's a tourtière. Let's taste.
It's delicious. The ingredients are good, but the savoir-faire is essential.
