In France, the radioactivity in the environment near nuclear facilities is regularly monitored. This involves collecting samples from air, water, soil, wildlife, plants, and food. Initially, nuclear operators were responsible for this monitoring, but now scientists from the Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Authority (ASNR) also take part. Environmental protection groups can also contribute to these efforts. The ASNR carries out its own measurements to ensure continuous monitoring of radioactivity. This helps track the impact of authorized discharges into the environment, estimate people's exposure to radiation, and detect any unusual situations. Choosing the right sampling locations and foods to analyze requires a deep understanding of each area's unique characteristics. This knowledge is crucial for the study's effectiveness. Local expertise about the land is especially important. In La Hague, a town in the Manche region, there is a radioactive waste storage center and a nuclear fuel treatment plant operated by Orano (formerly Areva). A sampling and measurement campaign focused on local food production was carried out in a collaborative way between the ASNR and local groups, including members of local nuclear information committees, agricultural producers, and other community members in the Cotentin area. A working group was formed, bringing together the ASNR, local information committee members, representatives from Orano La Hague, and the Manche Storage Center (CSM) of the National Radioactive Waste Management Agency (Andra). They discussed the sampling plan, especially the locations and methods for collecting samples. They also identified local producers, such as market gardeners and livestock farmers, and helped select and collect the samples. The campaign focused on plant and animal products, as well as hunted game. Each type of food provides different information about how radioactivity moves through the environment. Plants absorb substances from the air and soil, while animals take in what they breathe, drink, and eat. The location where the sample is taken is also very important. To understand the source of any radioactive traces, the location is just as important as the measurement itself. This decision took into account the direction of the prevailing winds in the area. The collected samples were sent to ASNR laboratories, where the measurements and results were analyzed. Naturally occurring radionuclides, such as potassium-40, are present in food. There are also traces of artificial radionuclides from past nuclear tests and accidents. This combination forms what is known as a "radiological background noise," which the ASNR summarized nationally in 2022. The analysis of the samples collected near the Orano La Hague site shows the current influence of the facility: tritium and carbon-14, found in its authorized discharges, were measured at higher levels than the background noise in several plants and food products. The highest levels of radioactivity are mainly found near the facility and along the path of the prevailing winds, and they decrease with distance. On the coast, some measurements are higher than those near the site, which can be explained by the transport of sea spray carrying some of the tritium released into the sea. Gorse, used as bio-indicators, show this gradient more clearly than food. In food products, the level of radioactivity is one to five times the background noise, which is considered low. Dosimetric estimates, which consider each radionuclide studied, the quantity consumed, and how it behaves in the body, conclude that the exposure for consumers is very low. The results of the radioactivity measurements, carried out by nuclear operators and the ASNR, are collected by the National Network of Environmental Radioactivity Measurements. The 2006 law on transparency and nuclear safety ensures the public's right to reliable and accessible information about risks and releases. Opening the data from this network meets this requirement. However, simply publishing figures is not enough, as the units used are technical, and the results include uncertainties. A detection does not directly indicate the dose received. The participatory initiative around the Orano site in La Hague, which involved local actors, helped identify and consider specific food production and self-consumption practices that the usual system would not have included. This approach is appreciated, but it can only be effective in a transparent framework. A working group can never represent all stakeholders, so transparency is essential so that everyone can access the adopted protocol, the responsibilities of the various actors, and the remaining open questions. When well conducted, a participatory approach allows for the effective consideration of residents' concerns and enables scientists to explain their results, the method chosen, and the path that led to them.