“Politicians say all sorts of things. I wanted to see if it was possible to do what the minister was asking us to do,” Carle said. He had just three rules for himself: eat only food produced in France, remove any contact with foreign-made goods and do so on €1,800 a month (above the minimum wage of €1,430 to cover the extra expense of living in Paris). The journalist was shocked to find out, at the start of the experiment, that only 4.5% of the contents of his flat were made in France – and that the rest would have to go, including the lightbulbs (China) and green beans (Kenya).
What do the rules of the experiment allow Carle to do?
Live on a budget above the minimum wage Spend over €1,800 a month on French food Have 4.5% of his possessions be made outside of France Use his laptop, made outside of France