Re-Belle shapes the future of food. The French association, established in 2014, combines waste reduction with social justice. They consist of people who are reintegrating into society and produce quality jams of unsold fruit.
Each year, almost 45% of fruits and vegetables produced in France end up as leftovers. The food is not beautiful enough, too ripe or labeled rotten and therefore end up in the bin. Re-Belle’s mission is to save these fruits by processing and transforming them in delicious French delicacies. Each week, Re-Belle collects 600kg of unsold fruits in 15 partner supermarkets in the Ile de France (Paris) region.
Once the food is collected, they are sorted, washed, and cut before they are cooked. Per week, the leftovers produce 1500-2000 pots of different jams. The natural craft is sold in more than a hundred local supermarkets and grocery stores. No better example to illustrate recycling: from waste, to production, to locally sold fresh food.
In addition, these types of projects shape our future as they add the social justice. Re-Belle provides jobs for 23 people, of which 15 are local inhabitants in a professional integration process. Moreover, the association offers workshops for locals to raise awareness around waste reduction. To date, more than 1500 people learned different ways to re-use fruits and vegetables.