Agriviva

1 site manager, 17 employees including 8 people benefeting from the integration program

Agriviva underwent a complete overhaul in 2023, recruiting a new, experienced and structured team, including Laure Vidal as Managing Director with ten years of experience in the food industry and entrepreneurship. Agriviva currently employs 17 people, including an operations manager and a purchasing and logistics manager. 8 employees are currently on full-time integration program, and benefit from vocational training within the company as well as socio-professional support from GESS. Agriviva also benefits from the expertise of Cuisinons nos Paysages, co-founded by Augustin Le Goaster and Clément Lefebvre. The founder of FoodBiome, Jean-Philippe Quérard, also President of the "Pour une Agriculture du Vivant" movement and an expert in agroecological transition, is devoting 30% of his time to developing the network of vegetable workshops.

Laure Vidal

Agriviva Site Director

Augustin Le Goaster

Co-founder of "Cuisinons nos Paysages"

Clément Lefebvre

Co-founder of "Cuisinons nos Paysages"

Jean-Philippe Quérard

Founder of FoodBiome

The French food system is largely massified, centralized, standardized, ultra-processed and not very resilient to crises and climatic hazards. 60% of the fruit and 40% of the vegetables consumed in France are imported, 97.9% of a territory's agricultural production is exported, and 2% of food companies account for 85% of the sector's sales. Despite the development of vegetable and canning factories rooted in their region, the traditional and main agroindustrial players are making it impossible to perpetuate these virtuous models supported by local workshops. Because of competitive pressures, variable production costs and complex negotiations with distributors, local producers are not fairly paid. And yet, the greening of the food supply represents a real lever for action to reduce the agricultural sector's greenhouse gas emissions, 80% of which are generated by livestock farming on a European scale (80% of livestock farming in France is intensive). To overcome these obstacles and relocalize supplies of fruit, vegetables and leguminous, we need to implement sustainable solutions aimed at strengthening the resilience of these key players in local agriculture.

Unite local vegetable and canning factories into a network, to share the tools and skills they need to sustain their business over the long term: this is the ambition of Cuisinons nos Paysages, supported by FoodBiome, which plans to create, take over or support a dozen vegetable and canning factories over the next four years. Agriviva is the first pilot site, offering a wide range of ultra-fresh, high-quality, seasonal products (raw vegetables, cooking vegetables, fruit, mixes), 30% of which is organic. Agriviva is committed to working on a long-term basis with its regional producers, guaranteeing them numerous outlets throughout the year, by adapting to the seasonal pace of production. The new line of supermarket products is part of a wider mission to reconcile and connect local producers with consumers. Agriviva is the result of a partnership between all the local players involved (producers, public and private central kitchens, distributors, manufacturers, etc.) to promote the development of local agriculture, maintain and develop jobs in the sector and produce high quality food.

Agriviva's business model is based mainly on the public catering market. Agriviva supplies numerous public authorities, such as the Montpellier central kitchen (a market representing 15,000 meals/day), the Hérault department (25,000 meals/day) and school canteens throughout the region (10,000 meals/day). They also work with catering companies (Dupont restauration, Elior Group, Synergie etc.) and wholesalers (Occitane fruits, Garonne fruits, Réseau Provence Dauphiné). To diversify and deseasonalize its business model, Agriviva has developed a range for supermarkets (with Carrefour and Auchan) and regional agri-food SMEs. This strategy enables the company to fill the gaps created by the school vacations and to smooth out its income throughout the year. As a result, sales doubled in July-August 2023 compared with the same period in 2022. To achieve this, the funds raised via LITA.co will be used to expand and modernize the current production workshop, and to open a new cooking workshop for 5th range products (pre-cooked leguminous and potatoes, mashed potatoes…).  Successful fundraising on Lita will enable Agriviva to disburse two additional financing packages: an investment grant from the Occitanie region for €273k and a subordinated loan from the Banque des Territoires for €350k.

Agriviva aims to provide solutions for a more plant-based and less processed diet, to enhance the value of farmers' sorting efforts, to help people find employment, and to strengthen the region's food resilience:

- A player in employment and professional integration in Occitanie through the socio-professional support program run by GESS, to which Agriviva belongs.

- Support local farmers by offering sustainable outlets and creating synergy between the farming community and committed citizens, to encourage positive change in the field of agriculture and food.

- Respecting product seasonality to guarantee freshness and quality, while supporting sustainable farming practices. With 30% of its production certified as Organic Farming, the company is committed to promoting ecofriendly methods and offering healthy products.