Initiatives to protect the environment at every level
Leroux has been drying, roasting and processing chicory roots since 1858.
The various washing operations involved in the process produce natural effluents, which are high in organic plant matter and need to be treated before they are released into the natural environment.
In 1998, true to the group's pioneering spirit, Leroux became the first European food-processing firm to invest in a unique fertilisation and irrigation system. This has enabled us to use 100% of our waste water to irrigate a plantation of willow trees. The willows act as a biological purification system and help to prevent soil erosion. This system helps to support the biodiversity of both fauna and flora, and is also used as a renewable energy source. The willows are coppiced every two years, thus providing wood for heating.
Leroux supports initiatives by groups such as Eco-Emballages and local authorities to collect and sort the packaging of the products we consume. The partnership the firm has formed with Eco-Emballages is fully in line with our corporate approach to environmental issues, and involves printing information about the environmental benefits of recycling packaging on Leroux packs.
As our packs will tell you, sorting waste and recycling all Leroux chicory packaging represents an energy saving equivalent to the amount of electricity consumed by a village of 200 people for a year or a neighbourhood of 2,400 people for a month! (Based on our average annual sales.) Sorting for recycling helps to save energy: so let's get on with it!
Let's do the same for Nature as Nature does for us!
