A graduate of the École Polytechnique and a biophysics researcher, Guy Paillotin started his career at the Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique (CEA), and worked as Assistant General Manager of the INRA between 1984 and 1989 before being appointed Chairman (1991 to 1999). He was the Assistant General Manager of the CEA between 1989 and 1994, and Chairman of the French National Research Evaluation Committee from 1992 to 1994.

He is currently a member of the Ethics and Safety Committee on Agricultural Research Applications (COMEPRA). He was the Chairman of CIRAD between 1992 and 1999, and has been Chairman of the Board of Directors of the INA-PG since 1999, as well as various other bodies devoted to research, the environment and food.

Paillotin has published numerous scientific articles and works for the general public. He is the Permanent Secretary of the Académie d’Agriculture de France.