Fromage affray! Moment French farmers use cheeseboards as weapons during brawl with visitors at agriculture show

A ‘garlic fight’ broke out at France’s leading agricultural fair on Sunday night, with 15 people arrested following a violent dispute in which exhibitors and visitors turned heavy cheese boards into improvised weapons.

The extraordinary violence that took place at the world-famous Salon d’Agriculture on Sunday evening was attended mostly by young men, some wearing chef’s aprons.

Police and security guards were among those injured in the conflict.

A police officer at the scene said: ‘The conflict started at around 18.30 in hall 4 of the hall.

‘He appeared to be between stall holders and visitors. While 15 of those involved in the incident were detained, it was learned that some of them were treated for minor injuries. Voices of police and gendarmerie trying to intervene were also heard.’

A video posted online by broadcast TV news channel BFM shows a group fighting around a nougat stand.

While punches and kicks were heard, others used kitchen utensils to hit people’s heads.

At one point, a knife used to cut nougat was held aloft before being thrown.

French President Emmanuel Macron is also among those who regularly visit the Salon d’Agriculture. She was photographed visiting the opening of the International Agricultural Fair (Salon De L’Agriculture) at the Paris Expo Porte De Versailles in Paris.

The spacious exhibition halls showcase the finest French food and wine, as well as more than 4,000 farm animals, tractors and other farming equipment. (Pictured is Gabriel Attal, General Secretary of the Renaissance Party and President of the Ensemble pour la République – EPR group)

Another visitor to the hall said: ‘People were very noisy. They may have been drinking all day; This is something that is very common on the Show.’

French President Emmanuel Macron is among the regular visitors to the annual Salon d’Agriculture at the exhibition center in Porte de Versailles, west of Paris.

The spacious exhibition halls showcase the finest French food and wine, as well as more than 4,000 farm animals, tractors and other farming equipment.

According to the organisers, the aim is to turn the area into ‘France’s largest farm’.

Approximately 600,000 people attend each year and often hosts more than 1,000 participants

French politicians see the event, broadcast around the world, as a spectacle as they try to influence voters in a traditionally agricultural country.

Mr Macron holds the current record for the longest time a president has been in the Hall, enjoying a full 13 hours in 2024.

He said he wanted to meet ‘anyone who wants to exchange views’.

Farmers’ protests, angry at low returns, increased bureaucracy, the imposition of environmental regulations and what they see as unfair competition from abroad, have been going on for years.