The vast majority of schools in France are not meeting a law that requires at least 20% of food served in school canteens to be organic since 2022. According to recent studies, nearly three-quarters of the 11.6 million students in France are boarders, and if the law were properly followed, they should be getting at least 50% of their meals from "sustainable and quality" sources, with at least 20% being organic or in the process of conversion. However, only 11.8% of schools have met the 20% organic target in 2025. This figure comes from self-reported data on a government website, but the organization Agir pour l'environnement argues that only the most compliant schools report their usage, leading to an overestimation of the actual organic rate. There are no legal sanctions for not reporting or complying with the organic quota, and many local governments are not following the law. An environmental group published a ranking of organic canteens in January 2026, asking 97 cities across France to report their organic usage in 2024. Only 66 cities met the legal threshold, 20 did not even reach the required level, and many others did not respond at all. Cities like Saint-Étienne, Périgueux, and Bordeaux ranked high with over 66% organic in their primary school canteens, while others, such as Orléans, had less than 5% organic content. In Orléans, the local government has chosen to prioritize food quality based on local and short supply chains over strictly organic products. They argue that nearly 65% of the food served to students comes from local sources, and that not all local products are necessarily organic. They prefer organic products from neighboring areas over purely local products that may contain pesticides. In contrast, the city of Blois has significantly increased its organic content in school meals, from 23.7% in 2023 to 50% in 2025, by taking control of school catering and focusing on local organic suppliers. The Agence bio, an organization promoting organic agriculture, identifies the main obstacle to increasing organic food in school canteens as the lack of specific market allocation for organic products. When schools request both conventional and organic products in the same specification, it becomes difficult for organic suppliers to compete, as they are often excluded due to higher costs. In Blois, the city managed to increase the organic share by 20% in one year by taking back control of school catering from a private company and focusing on local producers, homemade meals, and reducing waste. The goal is to maintain affordable meal prices while improving health and sustainability for students. Despite these efforts, many cities still struggle to fully implement the Egalim law, which aims to promote sustainable and quality food in schools. The Collectif les pieds dans le plat, a group supporting local and organic food initiatives, emphasizes the need for political will and time to transition to fully organic and homemade meals. While some progress has been made, the recent addition of new quality labels to the Egalim law may dilute the focus on organic products, potentially weakening the push for healthier and more sustainable school meals.