Environmental dynamics serving the group’s growth

09 jan Environmental dynamics serving the group’s growth

As an eco-responsible company, Lesaffre’s day-to-day operations aim to preserve our planet and its natural resources. The group has long been engaged and invested in this domain, under our environmental management policy. For example, 15% of our industrial expenditures each year are now dedicated to the environment.

Our subsidiaries around the world draw inspiration from this proactive approach. Water and energy savings, the promotion of renewable energies, the development of co-products, effluent treatment and more: each time a new production site is built, nearly one-fourth of all its investments are made in the interest of environmental protection.

Incorporating our business into the environmental cycle

A virtuous production cycle, that respects nature, is a key commitment for Lesaffre. In every region of the world where the group has operations, nature and agriculture provide us with the raw materials that we need to produce our different type of yeasts. This includes water, sugar beet and sugar cane molasses (sugar confectionery by-products). Our company strives to make reasonable use of everything the land has to offer and foster those materials’ return to the natural environment under the best possible conditions.

Giving our co-products a second life

Here at Lesaffre, we consider our raw materials to be resources that we need to exploit to the fullest. We recycle them by concentrating and adjusting their composition, and develop new technologies to maximize their potential. Under our environmental policy, these investments have enabled the development of a range of agri-supply by-products, mainly designed for animal nutrition and plant fertilization.

Preserving water resources

Water… a most precious natural resource. Lesaffre uses new technologies to moderate our consumption. The water we use in our processes is treated at cutting-edge purification plants, before being returned to the river. For the past 20 years, our group has been working with academics and specialists from around the world to minimize the impact of our business on local ecosystems.

We now possess real scientific skills in decontaminating water and treating its effluents. Today, these effluents are used as sources of energy, thanks to the latest generation in anaerobic digesters.

Encouraging energy savings

In view of the growing shortage of fossil energy sources and the fight against climate change, Lesaffre is conscious of the ecological stakes of the 21st century. As a result, we strive to reduce our CO2emissions, in accordance with national plans determined by the Kyoto Protocol. Our production units conduct ongoing research into ways to optimize our energy consumption and limit our use of fossil fuels. The choice of river transportation for our raw materials in the North of France is one of the many examples of the work we do in this area.