Ecotone opens Europe's largest organic coffee factory

Ecotone, Europe’s leading producer in organic, plant-based, ethical, and sustainable food, has opened the doors to the continent’s largest 100% organic coffee and loose-leaf tea factory.

The company, which owns pioneering brands across seven countries, has launched Caféière in a 10-million-euro investment to meet growing demand for quality, organic hot drinks.

With financial support from the European Union and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), La Caféière is exemplary of Ecotone’s global ‘Food for Biodiversity’ mission – through which it strives to meet the highest environmental and sustainability standards.

La Caféière has been installed with a roasting smoke burner which cuts C02 emissions by 30% compared with traditional methods. Through green energy, wetland water management, 100% LED lighting and photovoltaic roof panels, the plant is taking a global approach to energy efficiency.

The factory also operates a 0% landfill, 100% circularity policy. 85% of total leftover materials are recycled or reused in compost, and 15% are incinerated with energy recovery.

Through its commitment to producing exceptional organic coffee and tea, the factory will harness traditional production methods such as slow roasting to create unique aromatic balances. Three roasters and an R&D team work on site to ensure that the different vintage coffees are made to the finest quality.

More than 60% of La Caféière's sales will now be through Fairtrade certified products. The aim is to achieve over 70% Fair Trade coffee and tea within two years.

The term "caféière" refers to a plantation of coffee trees, the shrub from which the coffee beans come. These plantations are originally islands of biodiversity, because the 80 species of coffee trees in the world thrive in rich and varied ecosystems.

To preserve biodiversity, the coffee cherries are hand-picked when ripe from high-altitude plantations and mainly come from organically grown and reared 'Coffea arabica' coffee trees in Central and South America and East Africa. The cherries are then washed and air-dried by partner producers to create a dense, transportable, and storable green coffee.

The coffee and tea sectors that supply La Cafétière are distinguished by their agricultural practices, which go even further than organic standards. This includes the diversity of plant species grown per plot (agroforestry), fair income for small producers, and positive action by partner cooperatives to combat deforestation in their areas.

At least six major accreditations demonstrate the quality of coffee and loose-leaf tea produced by La Caféière: Organic, Fair for Life, Fairtrade/Max Havelaar, Qualité Artisan, Bio Entreprise durable, and B Corp.

Local associations also work with La Caféière, such as a local ESAT for the social and professional integration of adults with disabilities, and the Bordeaux and Gironde food bank for the redistribution of products.

La Caféière, is the next milestone in Ecotone’s journey to reimagine a sustainable future of food, driven by its leading brands: Destination, Naturela, Clipper, Bonneterre, Alter Eco, and Piramide.

ENDS

Key figures for La Caféière

- 180 organic tea and coffee products

- 60 direct jobs

- 9500 m2 (including 8000m2 dedicated entirely to the coffee factory)

Coffee:

- 3200 tonnes of organic coffee received each year

- 5.5 million units of organic coffee sold annually

- 12 organic coffee origins, i.e., around thirty green coffee material codes

- 60% of coffee sales generated by fair trade labelled products

- 100 ref coffee products

Tea:

- 100 tonnes of organic tea produced each year

- 80 references of tea products

- 72% of tea sales made with fair trade labelled products

About Ecotone

Ecotone is the leading company in Europe for organic, plant-based, healthy, and fair-trade food. Headquartered in Lyon, France, our family of companies is committed to making food that supports biodiversity. Our brands include many pioneers and market leaders such as Bjorg, Bonneterre, Clipper, Whole Earth, Allos, Alter Eco… With offices and production sites across seven countries, brand distributed in more than 80 countries, our 1,600 people embody every day our purpose: “Food for biodiversity”. In 2022 Ecotone becomes the highest-ranking food B Corp among large companies, entering the top 10 of large B Corp certified companies worldwide.