Matthias Fekl (born 1977) is former French Minister for the Interior (2017), Secretary of State for Foreign Trade (2014 – 2017), and member of the National Assembly (2012 – 2014). He is a lawyer at the Paris Bar and founding partner of the law firm Audit – Duprey – Fekl and of Equanim international. He is also a board member of the French Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and of Paris City of law. He is chairman of Brasseurs de France (the French Brewers Association) since 2019 (re-elected 2022). After two years of a health crisis that has affected the brewing industry, he is committed to promoting the expertise and commitment of brewers and helping them face new challenges such as rising production costs and better respect for the environment. After studying at the Ecole Normale Supérieure (Lettres et Sciences humaines), Sciences-Po and ENA, he was an administrative judge and maître de conférences in public law at Sciences-Po in Paris (2005 – 2010).
THE BREWERS FORUM
SPEAKER
Main sponsor
Matthias Fekl
Brasseurs de France
President
The Brewers Forum
Brasseurs de France
Founded in 1878, Brasseurs de France, a professional union for French brewing, represents more than 98% of French beer production and has 98% of SMEs/VSEs among its members.
The union brings together artisanal, independent, historic, family and international breweries which generate more than 4.1 billion euros in turnover (2019 figures) and has two main missions:
- the defense of the common interests of French brewing and the profession,
- the promotion of French beer, its heritage and the exceptional know-how of its brewers.
A major agri-food sector due to its economic weight from upstream (barley, yeast and hops) to downstream (distribution, and cafes, hotels, restaurants), activities linked to the sector represent more than 128,000 jobs for a single figure total business of €15 billion.
Brasseurs de France has been a member of the organization of European Brewers (The Brewers of Europe) since 1958, as well as of the European Brewery Convention (EBC), an international scientific organization, of the National Association of Food Industries (ANIA) and the CPME.