Designing sustainable portions

At Bel, we aim to build a more sustainable food model through our unique portfolio of brands based on individual portions. This signature format of the Group offers numerous advantages: 

• Preserving the quality and safety of food over long periods, sometimes even without refrigeration, thanks to the airtight sealing of the portion.

• Enabling a larger number of consumers to enjoy the benefits of our products, offered in a convenient and easily transportable format.  

• Limiting overconsumption and providing consumers with a nutritional intake tailored to their needs.  

• Contributing to reducing food waste by allowing our products to be consumed over a longer period compared to family-sized packaging where leftovers are easily wasted. 

 

However, Bel is aware of the environmental challenges posed by the use of individual packaging and, more generally, the environmental impact of raw material consumption and packaging end-of-life management. This is why the Group strives to limit the environmental impact of its packaging in line with its BeLowCarbon strategy. We adopt an eco-design approach throughout the life cycle of our products to strike the right balance between the numerous advantages of individual portions and sustainable packaging management. Reducing food waste is a catalyst for achieving our BeLowCarbon objective, Bel’s ambitious plan to align with the 1.5°C trajectory, validated by the Science Based Target Initiative. 

Our ambition is to actively contribute to a circular economy, from sourcing till the end of the life cycle, ideally meaning to eliminate waste, circulate materials, and regenerate natural ecosystems. We organize our commitments according to the 5Rs, aligned with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s butterfly diagram, which illustrates the continuous flow of materials in a circular economy: 

• “Refuse” unnecessary elements and waste: The best packaging is the one that does not exist, so the first step is to “refuse” unnecessary packaging. 

• “Reduce” material usage and food losses: Once we have avoided all unnecessary packaging, we aim to reduce our footprint by applying eco-design principles at all stages of the packaging life cycle, from design to end-of-life. 

• “Reuse” as much as possible and redirect food losses to humans or animals: To encourage consumers to reduce the use of single-use packaging, we aim to develop reusable, refillable, or bulk packaging offerings. 

• “Restore” resources: As we aim to drastically reduce our use of plastic and aluminum materials, we explore and prioritize alternative solutions using renewable, recycled, or certified materials that do not compete with food products. This will help reduce our carbon footprint and preserve natural resources. 

• “Recycle” packaging: We want to optimize the end-of-life of packaging, encourage sorting and recycling by clearly communicating with consumers, and establish partnerships to develop collection and recovery channels for packaging waste. 

 

Because Bel is convinced that packaging challenges can only be addressed collectively, we are already involved in numerous coalitions of action bringing together product manufacturers, packaging actors, NGOs, or government institutions to drive positive changes around the 5Rs. 

 

To ensure the achievement of our packaging ambition internally, we rely on specific governance and effective tools for our employees. 

To learn more about our Bel Sustainable Portions Policy.

Today, 40% of food produced is never consumed*, leading to major social, economic, and environmental consequences. The impact on climate change is considerable, as these losses generate 10% of total greenhouse gas emissions from human activity. Paradoxically, 1 in 9 people suffer from malnutrition worldwide**. Thus, combating food waste has many beneficial effects for both people and the planet: improving food security, combating climate change, saving money, and reducing pressures on land, water, biodiversity, and waste management systems. 

 

In a circular economy approach, combating food waste is key to avoiding unnecessary resource consumption, food waste production, and greenhouse gas emissions related to their production. This is why the Bel Group is committed to reducing food losses and waste throughout its value chain, from the production and collection of raw materials to the consumption of its finished products. 

 

In 2021, the Group joined the 10x20x30 initiative, committing to halve food waste in its own operations by 2030 (vs 2021). Bel’s vision is to move towards zero destruction of edible products and 100% valorization of food waste if destruction is unavoidable. 

Because every action counts, the collective fight against food waste is ultimately a matter of citizenship involving our consumers, as well as our employees and, more generally, all the people we can influence in our ecosystem. It is through our iconic brands that we have chosen to empower citizens to act against food waste. 

To learn more about our Bel Charter to combat food waste with our best practices throughout the value chain.  

 

*Source: WWF 2021  

** Source: FAO 2018 The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World