An economic sector in search of increasing quality, the out-of-home catering sector is attracting organic product suppliers. Indeed, many French people want organic products in schools, hospitals, and retirement homes, as well as in restaurants for some.
Regularly questioned about the quality of their offerings, school restaurants are committed to an approach that has set itself the objective of 20% organic by 2022. Commercial catering is also moving towards more organic products: in 2018, it purchased €230 million worth of organic products (+11% vs. 2017). According to a survey conducted among 1040 establishments by Agence Bio/CSA Research in September 2019, 43% of them use organic products*. For restaurants wishing to make their involvement in organic products visible, Ecocert will give a conference in the Agora space of Natexpo on the AB Restoration label.
This year, more than one hundred specialist exhibitors in this sector are present at Natexpo. Le Restoration route allows professionals to seamlessly discover the latest innovations in recipes and packaging. A unique opportunity to identify new suppliers!
Collective catering: choosing quality
Increasingly turning towards organic products, collective catering works with trusted suppliers capable of delivering products packaged in an appropriate manner.
Concerning organic meat, for which the out-of-home catering sector (all sectors combined) represents only 6% of consumption in France, the demand is very real: sales of organic meat in out-of-home catering increased by 12% between 2018 and 2017 according to the 2018 Organic Meat Observatory*. With its sector of breeders and master butchers committed to organic, Antoine Macelier supplies pork meat, raw or cooked, cut, sliced and calibrated on demand. The Blavet Charcuterie is able to prepare sausages of any weight, from fresh VPF meat and Guérande salt – products much appreciated by children.
As an alternative to meat, certain protein-rich plant-based products offer a complete and balanced meal. This is what Nutrinat, with its durum wheat pasta and sprouted legumes.
Supply possibilities continue to expand in this sector, such as with Corsican citrus fruits from the company Patrick Berghman, one of the pioneers of organic farming on the Isle of Beauty.
Packaging is also important in catering, which handles large volumes. For maximum practicality, Biobleud offers frozen, ready-to-fill raw pastry sheets. Expert in Provençal recipes, Meditea provides a kilo of organic black tapenade for collective catering. Local in a Jar, based in Avignon, favors local products, with its 100% organic fruit and vegetable purees harvested within 150 km. Its 2 kg fruit pouches are ideal for collective or commercial catering – just like the 4 kg flexible pouches from Mas de l'Amandine.
Commercial catering: committed suppliers
A growing number of restaurants are looking to invest more in organic products—hence the AB Restauration label, which will give them visibility. Suppliers of raw materials, as well as those developing sophisticated cookware, are meeting these establishments' new requirements.
Among the leaders in the buckwheat sector in France, the Moulin de la Courbe supplies restaurants with certified organic buckwheat flour from seeds, guaranteed gluten-free and of French or EU origin. Paulic Meunerie also offers organic wheat and buckwheat flours.
For vegan fans, Avenia has developed vegetarian meal recipes inspired by cultures around the world, available in ready-to-serve glass jars or in 1 to 2 kg bags to be prepared on site. Specialist in seaweed farming, Marinoé provides restaurants with a whole range of prepared products, ready to be used: sardine tapas, seaweed tartares, ready-to-use salads.
Fine dining in search of original flavors can rely on innovative suppliers, such as Black Cock, which develops organic sauces – like its latest peste Verde – under the brand Mamabé's Journey. Coming from Gers farms, black garlic from The steam room, with its fragrance and slightly sweet taste, opens up new perspectives in cooking, just like the extra-crunchy spirulina flakes from Dihe or the urucum of Guayapi.
Positioned high-end, Thunder of Brest supplies restaurants and hotels with beers, teas and seaweed herbal teas. To accompany restaurant dishes with finesse, the range of Oé organic wines brings taste without the pesticides. Lyspackaging has developed a 50cl compostable and/or recyclable plant-based bottle containing water drawn from the Atlantic Ocean, desalinated and remineralized. The brine is recycled by other industries – a remarkable example of the circular economy that hotels and restaurants can showcase.
Fast food revisits its offering
Fast food also knows how to adapt to the demands of a growing segment of consumers by offering healthy products. Organic hamburger buns (All right), thin and crispy organic artisanal chips (Lacori), white cheesecake (Baillon and Company), Cookies Balls classified Nutriscore A (Gustoneo)… Organic suppliers are innovating with snack products with more authentic and nutritionally balanced recipes.
On the drinks side, innovations are multiplying and meet all desires: ethical and fair trade lime and mint kombucha (Jubilees), teas in the form of biodegradable infusers (The Trading Post Route), blueberry and elderflower iced tea (Leafwell), teas and infusions of all kinds (Pagès) ...
*Source: restauration21.fr