While the growth of mass consumption products from organic farming has not faltered since the start of the crisis (with leaps of 30% in certain weeks according to Nielsen), Léa Nature wants to keep its image of pioneer and purist of this mode of production.
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The group of food and cosmetic products stamped AB, which achieved 450 million euros in turnover in 2019, has just made a series of 50 commitments on its flagship brand Jardin Bio. The latter, which weighs for a third of its activity (113 million euros), specializes in food products. It has 550 references distributed in supermarkets and specialized organic circuits.
While the market for AB products has just exceeded 10 billion euros in turnover and the offers have multiplied in supermarkets, one of the historic groups in the sector, born 25 years ago, wants to " make get to know your efforts better and what you do more than organic in the generic sense of the term, ”explains Charles Kloboukoff, the founding boss of Léa Nature.
Better on organic
With these fifty commitments, Jardin Bio, which becomes Jardin Bio Etic, wants to be among the best bidders on a series of social, environmental and climate-related objectives. The brand thus offers 20% of its fair trade offer, and targets 40% within 5 years. It also undertakes to donate 5% of its net profits dedicated to the development of organic farming sectors. The work also concerns its packaging, with less than 1.5% of its packaging (by weight) made of plastic.
The brand finally defends itself from any presence of controversial additives, nanoparticles or non-organic flavors in its products, and claims more than 70% of its Made in France offer. Fifty of its references also display the demanding logo of Origin France Garantie. " It is a certification well identified by our customers who are sensitive to the origin of the products," explains the manager. The aim is to triple this number of references by 2025 ”.
A way to stand out from the organic lot which is flourishing on the shelves, by offering an offer carrying a broad vision of this mode of production. And therefore a wide range of values which goes beyond simple AB specifications. “ With the democratization of organic farming, his philosophy has been weakened. Today we make organic as we do conventional: by buying in mass and anywhere raw materials without worrying about the local side, by not giving social obligation, by relocating factories or by packaging with anything, laments the leader. The role of historic players is to put some sense back into all of this . ”
Extensive communication campaign
With this Etic strategy, the group, whose flagship brand remains the main contributor to organic growth, wants to avoid seeing it pass in front of other players that it considers less virtuous. What has already happened in distribution, the historic organic brands (Biocoop, Naturalia ...) having seen the big retailers come to walk on their flowerbeds, nibbling an increasingly important part of the market growth.
To avoid this and draw the fruits of its costly commitments by making them known, Léa Nature will launch a vast communication campaign, increasing its media presence by 50%. If the group eases a little foot on the new products, which will arrive rather 2021, it does not exclude acquisitions by the end of the year. With 11% growth expected this year, Léa Nature should exceed 500 million euros in turnover.
