Yogurts from the Ebes farm in Valdonnez won gold at the Lyon International Competition

Lionel et Myriam Coulomb peuvent être fiers de leurs yaourts. "Invitation à la ferme" – "Invitation à la ferme"

Gaec de l’Ebes, in Saint-Étienne-du-Valdonnez, won two gold medals at the Lyon International Competition for its plain and lemon-flavored yogurts. A victory that was all the more delicious since it was its first participation.

First participation in the Lyon International Competition and already a success for the Ebes farm! Two of the yogurts (plain and lemon-flavored) from the farm located in Saint-Étienne-du-Valdonnez have in fact won the highest distinction in the prestigious competition.

Processing, a solution to add value to milk

Lionel and Myriam Coulomb started processing their milk just over a year ago. “We were fed up with our product being considered just a raw material and poorly valued, explains Lionel Coulomb. We didn't like the fact that the price was based on a world price.” Rather than cheese, the couple chose to make plain and flavored yogurts, dessert creams and fromage blanc, which are less common in Lozère.

The yogurts are sold in grocery stores and supermarkets in Lozère and Gard. The Ebes farm also supplies communities. At the same time, the Gaec continues to deliver part of its milk to a group of producers. “It’s a flexibility. We know that if we don’t process our milk, it will still leave.” Today, they process a quarter of their production, or around 40,000 litres of milk per year. Eventually, Myriam and Lionel would like to process half of it.

Two experienced farmers

While yogurt production is very recent for the Gaec, Lionel and Myriam Coulomb are not new to farming. Lionel took over his uncle’s farm in 1998. A true vocation. “I always wanted to be a farmer since I was little. My parents weren't, but I was still immersed in it.“

Myriam was an accountant. She started working with her husband in 2007, initially as a secondary activity, before creating the Gaec seven years later. “Combining the two was difficult“, admits Myriam. Despite all the difficulties of the job, she does not regret her choice. “It's another way of life. For example, it allowed me to be available for the children at lunchtime. It has constraints but also advantages for family life.“

A Gaec member of the Invitation à la ferme network

The Ebes farm is part of the Invitation à la ferme network. Created almost ten years ago, the network aims to improve the income of organic milk producers by developing local processing and sales. The products are marketed under the Invitation à la ferme brand and resold within an 80 km radius of the farm. The 43 member farms benefit from administrative and communication support. “A farm could never pay for all of that”, emphasizes Corinne Charote, the network's communications manager. In return, farmers commit to comply with strict specifications: the animals must spend more than seven months in the fields and their ration must be composed of at least 70% grass.

In organic farming since 2021

Since 2021, the farm has been producing organically. A conversion that forced Lionel and Myriam Coulomb to change their habits. “When I sowed temporary meadows, I mixed two or three different fodders, Lionel explains. Today, it's five or six so that they are complementary for the soil and for the cows.” Since then, the breeder claims that the health of his herd has improved, and with it his production. “The diet and health of the cows are what makes the product behind it.“

Despite their two gold medals, the breeding couple does not want to rest on their laurels. “We will represent products next year, but we will not go into conquered territory.“

Information: www.fermedelebes.fr