2023-05-28 15:48:19
17% of the food produced worldwide each year is wasted, according to the latest UN study, from 2021. In addition, between 8% and 10% of greenhouse gas emissions come from food produced and not consumed. And it is that no one escapes that ugly products are not sold in large stores, even if they were born that way from the earth. There is also now a business opportunity in them.
This is how the French company Bene Bono understands it, born in 2020, which arrived in Madrid at the beginning of February and is about to start operating in Barcelona and Valencia. The company sells organic fruit and vegetable baskets online that are not accepted in large supermarkets. “Because they have spots, strange shapes or a caliber [tamaño] that excludes them from being sold there,” explains Camille Martinez, administrator of the company in Madrid. The company billed two million euros globally last year.
Bene Bono claims to have reused since his arrival in Spain some 55 tons of fruit and vegetables that were going to be wasted, equivalent to a saving of 27.5 million liters of water. For each basket, about 2,250 liters are saved. And, globally, the figures are skyrocketing. Since his birth, 300,000 kilos of CO2 emissions have been saved and about 490,000 million liters of water, according to their data.
neighborhood trade
Through a weekly subscription, users can receive the basket at home or go to pick it up at physical points, which are usually small businesses. “We want to link customers with neighborhood stores, the small ones,” he explains Martínez. In Madrid they have 130 and in Barcelona they begin their experience with 42. The client can obtain 4.5 kilos of fruit and vegetables for 14 euros or 9 kilos for 27. The products cannot be chosen are determined by the company, for the moment .
Although the company prefers not to disclose its dealings with growers, it acknowledges that the price they are paid for these ugly fruits and vegetables is less than what they would pay for standard ones. “Our business opportunity is there, indeed,” says Martínez-, but the farmer is also receiving income for a product whose sale amount was going to be zero”.
What it does have calculated is the benefit to the consumer. According to the administrator, the customer saves up to 30% than what would be spent in a store specializing in organic products.
“Long Term” Relationships
“The relationship with the farmers and the cooperatives is very close and long-term. We work a long time with them so that they understand what level of quality we need,” he explains. In Spain they operate with about 30 producers, distributed throughout the territory. With them the conditions of the product are agreed, which must be “at its optimum point of maturation”. The company knows “exactly what to buy each week” and “it wouldn’t make sense to buy too much because it would go to waste.”
To choose professionals, Bene Bono passes filters of both product quality and responsible employment, he explains Martínez. And while he understands that there are some farmers who may consider going it alone, he believes that “they might have a hard time marketing these products alone.” With this argument, his objective is to continue expanding in Spain and “bring this fruit and vegetable rescue mission to Europe.”
Next landing in Barcelona and Valencia
Next Monday, May 29, Bene Bono will start operating in Barcelona and, in June, in Valencia. Although the reception of the products will continue to be done in Madrid, from where they will be sent to these cities. And that transport has a cost in emissions. But “it is offset” by the water and CO2 saved by not wasting a produced food, he maintains Camille Martinez. However, the idea is to increase the number of warehouses so that there is one in each area in which they operate. “We have been in Spain very little and, due to the volume of demand, it is still not paying off. We will decide based on growth,” he affirms.
Until now, the company has 1,500 customers who receive about 1,000 weekly baskets. But the forecast is to reach 4,000 users at the end of the quarter. 22 employees work in Madrid, the same number that there will be in Barcelona and Valencia.
At the moment, the user can change one of the products included in the offer. And from the end of the year, the goal is for you to be able to make your own basket. In addition, from September, the option to buy other products such as oil, oats and jam will also be included.
“We bring a product that is more beneficial for health and the environment, proposing a more accessible price, to customers who might not be able to afford it at market price,” sums up the head of the company in Madrid.
#Bene #Bono #ugly #fruit #vegetables #save #money #CO2 #emissions