Concours Général Agricole

What Concours Général Agricole does

Concours Général Agricole (CGA) is a French national agricultural competition platform, founded in 1843 with the concours de Poissy and formally constituted in 1870, now operating under the auspices of the French Ministry of Agriculture. It organises five annual competition categories — Products, Wines, Animals, Agro-ecological Practices, and Young Professionals — awarding Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals across 19 product sub-categories (including dairy, oysters, charcuterie, beer, foie gras, and preserves), seven youth contests, and a Prix d'Excellence. The competition runs each year as an embedded activation of the Salon International de l'Agriculture in Paris (the 132nd edition was held 21 February to 1 March 2026; the 133rd is scheduled for 27 February to 7 March 2027).

Name

Concours Général Agricole

Legal name

Concours Général Agricole

Website

https://concours-general-agricole.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1870

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Concours Général Agricole is France's 150-year-old national agricultural competition, run under the Ministry of Agriculture, awarding medals to producers, winemakers, breeders, and young professionals across five contest categories at the annual Salon International de l'Agriculture.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Competitions and Quality Awards

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Agriculture, Farming & AgriTech Shows Organizers (THAHABAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food Safety Certification Bodies (ISO 22000, FSSC 22000, BRCGS, SQF) (AFALAAAC), Food Testing Laboratories (Microbiological, Chemical, Allergen) (AFALAAAA)

Keywords

• Agricultural competition
• Product quality awards
• Wine evaluation
• Livestock breeding
• Agro-ecological practices

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Competition Entry Fees: Agricultural producers and winemakers pay entry fees to participate in the various competitions (Products, Wines, Animals, Agro-ecological Practices, Young Professionals).

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Concours Général Agricole is France's official annual agricultural competition that awards gold, silver, and bronze medals to producers of French terroir products, winemakers, livestock breeders, and farmers demonstrating agro-ecological practices, alongside seven dedicated youth competitions. Held during the Salon International de l'Agriculture in Paris, it evaluates thousands of wines and products through rigorous blind tasting by professional juries, serving as the national reference for French agricultural quality since 1870.

Product overview

The Concours Général Agricole is a unified competition platform organizing five categories of contests (Products, Wines, Animals, Agro-ecological Practices, and Young Professionals) that award gold, silver, and bronze medals to the best French agricultural products, wines, animals, and practices. Founded in 1843 and formally established in 1870, the organization operates as a single integrated platform with 7 dedicated youth competitions and a Prix d'Excellence, all aligned around the motto 'Le goût avant tout' (Taste first).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Concours des Produits Annual medal competition awarding gold, silver, and bronze medals to the best French terroir products across 19 diverse categories. Recognized worldwide, it supports French producers and provides consumers with quality benchmarks.
• Concours des Vins Annual wine competition recognized as a viticultural reference, with samples randomly taken from commercial stocks or vats and anonymized to guarantee total impartiality during tastings. Thousands of wines are evaluated each year.
• Concours des Animaux Reproducteurs Livestock breeding competition created in 1870 that awards the best French reproductive animals, constituting an essential element of the Salon International de l'Agriculture's appeal for the general public.
• Concours des Pratiques Agro-Écologiques Annual competition that values initiatives from farmers and breeders implementing the best agro-ecological practices, with two categories: Prairies & Parcours (grasslands) and Agroforesterie (agroforestry), contributing to biodiversity preservation and sustainable agriculture.
• Concours des Jeunes Professionnels Seven dedicated competitions revealing young talents among agricultural students, hotel and commercial students, recently established young farmers, and young wine producers, supporting professional training and career preparation.
• Prix d'Excellence Special excellence award recognizing outstanding achievement across the various Concours Général Agricole competitions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Thousands of wines evaluated annually through rigorous blind tasting processes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• CENECA (Centre National des Expositions et Concours Agricoles)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe organizing body behind the Salon International de l'Agriculture and the Concours Général Agricole. CENECA manages both the annual agricultural show and the competition, providing the venue and framework for the events.
• Salon International de l'AgriculturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrance's largest agricultural fair, hosting the CGA competition within its venue. The Salon attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors annually and provides the primary platform for the competition.
• Ministry of Agriculture (MAA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench Ministry of Agriculture as official governmental sponsor and regulatory authority overseeing agricultural quality standards and competitions.
• ComexposiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor French exhibition organizer managing the Salon International de l'Agriculture and related agricultural events.
• Chambres d'AgriculturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of French agricultural chambers supporting farmers and agricultural development, co-organizer of the Salon International de l'Agriculture.
• Races de FranceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench livestock breed association supporting the Animals competition category with expertise in animal genetics and breeding.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• International Taste & Quality Institute (iTQi): Brussels-based food and beverage quality certification body awarding 'Superior Taste Award' stars via blind tasting juries. Comparable to CGA's Concours des Produits as a paid-entry blind tasting certification scheme for food producers.
• International Wine Challenge (IWC): Premier global wine competition with rigorous blind tasting and medal awards analogous to CGA's Concours des Vins. Comparable as a structured tasting-judged medal system serving wine producers seeking quality certification.
• Concours Mondial de Bruxelles: International wine and spirits competition with rigorous blind tasting and medal awards. Comparable to CGA's Concours des Vins and Concours des Produits as a structured tasting-judged medal competition for beverage producers.
• Salon International de l'Agriculture: France's flagship agricultural fair that physically hosts the CGA competition and shares CENECA/Comexposium as organizers. Directly comparable as a co-located agricultural showcase and exhibition platform serving the same producer and consumer base.
• Mundus Vini: Large international wine competition awarding medals through blind tasting panels. Comparable as a peer wine competition that sells entry-based medal certification to global producers.
• Decanter World Wine Awards: Major international blind-tasting wine competition awarding medals on a global scale. Directly comparable as a wine competition with rigorous blind evaluation methodology producing internationally recognized quality signals for producers.

Broad incumbents

• Label Rouge: France's official quality label for poultry, meat, dairy and other agricultural products, overseen by the French Ministry of Agriculture. Comparable as a French governmental agricultural quality certification with broader scope than CGA medals but serving overlapping producer segments.
• INAO (Institut National de l'Origine et de la Qualité): French public institute managing AOC/AOP and IGP quality signs for wines, cheeses and agricultural products. Comparable as an official French quality certification authority in the same agricultural quality ecosystem that CGA's medals complement.
• Comexposium: Major French exhibition organizer that manages the Salon International de l'Agriculture. Comparable as the parent exhibition operator hosting CGA and as a broader incumbent in agricultural event organization.

Regional players

• Royal Agricultural Society of England: UK equivalent organizing agricultural competitions and livestock judging with century-long heritage. Comparable as a geographically adjacent agricultural competition body with similar livestock judging and product evaluation focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/concours-g%C3%A9n%C3%A9ral-agricole

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Concours Général Agricole