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Lingot du Nord — AI-generated illustration AI-generated illustration

PGI — Label Rouge — Nord-Pas-de-Calais

Lingot du Nord

“The Lingot du Nord is the soul of Flanders in a pearly white bean...”

Pulse from Nord-Pas-de-Calais, PGI (IGP) since 2008.

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At a glance

History & Origins

Lingot du Nord — AI-generated illustration AI-generated illustration

A pulse born in the plaine de la Lys

In the plaine de la Lys, a vast, fertile basin roughly twenty by forty kilometres straddling the départements of Nord and Pas-de-Calais, the history of the Lingot du Nord can be traced in the archives back to at least 1856: period documents already attest to its cultivation in the arrondissements of Armentières, Hazebrouck and Merville, where it was then the principal bean variety grown in the Nord. Its reputation quickly spread beyond the region: the Lingot du Nord was presented at the 1867 Exposition universelle, and in 1909 its cultivation still covered around 4,400 hectares in the vallée de la Lys.

An evocative name and domestic uses

Long a pillar of family mixed farming in the vallée de la Lys — alongside potatoes and fresh vegetables —, the Lingot du Nord still covered around 4,000 hectares at the beginning of the 20th century. A demanding crop that cannot be mechanised, from sowing to mounting on perroquets, has since reduced its growing area: today, around twenty farms keep the tradition alive across some fifty communes straddling Nord and Pas-de-Calais, covering around 60 hectares.

Dual PGI and Label Rouge recognition

Official recognition of the Lingot du Nord was established in two stages: the Label Rouge ‘Lingot’ (LA no. 15-98) was approved in 1998, followed by the registration of its PGI at European level in 2008 under Regulation (EC) No 284/2008 of 27 March 2008, after initial national recognition in 1997. This dual certification reflects demanding specifications — clay soil with over 20% clay, sowing after 1 May, field drying on perroquets, strict sorting of the beans — inherited from more than a century of local know-how. The Lingot du Nord remains an understated ambassador of Flemish culinary heritage, championed today by an association that brings together farmers, producers and packers from the vallée de la Lys.

Product characteristics

Sensory profile

Appearance

white to off-white bean, elliptical in shape, often with truncated ends and slightly flattened at one end; average length of 15 to 16 mm, thin and tender skin, almost imperceptible on the palate.

Aroma

discreet, with no marked dominant note.

Taste

mild flavour, free from bitterness, with characteristic chestnut notes that assert themselves upon cooking.

Texture

melting and non-floury, never gritty; the thin skin blends into the flesh.

How it is made

01

Sowing after 1 May

In clay soils (at least 20% clay), to avoid any risk of frost; crop rotation of at least 4 years.

02

Weeding and growth

Mandatory weeding throughout cultivation, manual after flowering; the climate of the plaine de la Lys, sheltered by the … Read more
Mandatory weeding throughout cultivation, manual after flowering; the climate of the plaine de la Lys, sheltered by the plateau de l'Artois, with a relatively dry late season favourable to ripening.
03

Harvesting by cutting below ground

As soon as the first yellowed pods appear, once 80% of the foliage has fallen, so as not to damage the pods.

04

Drying on perroquets

Traditional open-air drying in the field on wooden frames called ‘perroquets’, for a minimum of 7 days (up to 2 months d… Read more
Traditional open-air drying in the field on wooden frames called ‘perroquets’, for a minimum of 7 days (up to 2 months depending on the weather); this drying method preserves the delicacy of the bean's skin.
05

Threshing and sorting

Threshing without a combine harvester to avoid damaging the beans, followed by sorting and grading: maximum 0.5% defects… Read more
Threshing without a combine harvester to avoid damaging the beans, followed by sorting and grading: maximum 0.5% defects, size difference limited to 50% between the smallest and longest bean.
06

Packaging

Only the current season's harvest is packaged under PGI and Label Rouge; full batch traceability from parcel to pack… Read more
Only the current season's harvest is packaged under PGI and Label Rouge; full batch traceability from parcel to packet.

Tasting & pairings

Lingot du Nord — AI-generated illustration AI-generated illustration

Thanks to its thin skin, the Lingot du Nord requires no prior soaking — a certified characteristic of the Label Rouge —, which simplifies its preparation compared with many dried beans. Its melt-in-the-mouth, non-floury texture makes it an ingredient of choice for slow-cooked dishes, purées or warm salads.

Paradoxically, it was in the South-West that it first forged its gastronomic reputation: as early as 1938, restaurateurs in Castelnaudary adopted it for their cassoulet, where its ability to hold together during cooking works wonders. In the Nord, it remains a classic of local hotpots: it traditionally accompanies a carbonnade or a hochepot, the Flemish pot-au-feu.

Labels & certifications

PGI (IGP)

Since: 2008

Area covered: Plaine de la Lys — around fifty communes straddling Nord and Pas-de-Calais, around Merville

Key requirements: Lingot-type variety (Phaseolus vulgaris), clay soil ≥ 20%, sowing after 1 May, field drying on perroquets (7 days minimum), sorting with a maximum of 0.5% defects.

National recognition 1997.

Label Rouge

Since: 1998

Area covered: Plaine de la Lys — around fifty communes straddling Nord and Pas-de-Calais, around Merville

Key requirements: Current year's harvest only, guaranteed melt-in-the-mouth texture, traditional field drying on perroquets, no soaking required.

The people of the terroir

Guarantor body — the producers' association, syndicate or trade body that upholds the appellation Guarantor Merville

Association Lingot du Nord

Association

Part of the production is certified organic Producer · Organic range Merville

Asseman Deprez

Family-owned

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Guarantor body — the producers' association, syndicate or trade body that upholds the appellation Guarantor Merville

Association Lingot du Nord

Association

The association presents itself as the organisation bringing together the terroir and savoir-faire of dried bean growers from the Plaine de la Lys, behind two Label Rouge (SIQO) certifications: the Lingot du Nord and the Flageolet Vert. It situates this traditional crop in Hauts-de-France, recognisable by its « perroquets » that allow the beans to dry in the open air. It is based in Merville, in the Petits Pacaux business park.

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AddressZAE des Petits Pacaux, BP 84, 59660 Merville
Phone03 28 49 65 32
Emaillingot-du-nord@wanadoo.fr
Websitelingotdunord.com
VisitsVisits by appointment
Call Directions
Part of the production is certified organic Producer Merville

Asseman Deprez

Family-owned

Based in Merville in the Nord, the family-owned business Asseman Deprez has packaged and marketed pulses and dried fruit and nuts since its founding in 1986, under its own VIDELYS brand, in plain packaging, or under private label for its clients; it carries out the roasting and grinding of certain dried fruits and nuts in-house at its factory. Lingot du Nord PGI (IGP) features among its Label Rouge products, alongside other pulses from the region.

Thanks to its geographical location and its network, it delivers its products throughout France, where they are distributed in particular across retail chains such as Carrefour, E.Leclerc, and Super U.

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AddressRue Louis Blériot, 59660 Merville, France
Phone03 28 49 65 32
Emailvidelys@asseman-deprez.com
Websiteasseman-deprez.com
FacebookFacebook page
Euro-leaf, the EU organic farming logo Part of the production is certified organic, since 2010.
Call Directions

Sources & references