The CSR approach
An environmental and societal shift
By conviction, ARECO has always taken into account ecological, societal and environmental concerns.
It is therefore natural that ARECO launched a CSR approach in 2012: Corporate Social Responsibility.
This approach allowed us to increase and emphasize the actions already implemented by the company.
Concerned about the local economic fabric, its social impact and its environment, ARECO’s CSR approach involves all the players in the company. From its internal resources to suppliers, customers and partners, while keeping as an objective the satisfaction of all its stakeholders.
Our various solutions for managing fresh food departments help to avoid throwing away fresh products and thus reduce food waste. The resources required to market them are thus reduced.
Our trophies
ARECO has been recognised many times for its commitment to CSR
ARECO was awarded two times: the National Trophy for the best CSR approach and the CSR06 regional Trophy for SMEs.
The company was awarded the Trophy for the best CSR initiative organised by the High Council of the Chartered Accountants and Auditors.
ARECO was once again awarded for its sense of innovation in the fight against food waste, but also for its economic change towards the economy of functionality and cooperation.
The company was awarded the Economic Development and Employment Award from the city of Grasse.
For ARECO, CSR represents an approach of improvement for the company. It everyone. CSR has allowed us to reinvent our company by taking into account these three pillars:
Since its creation, ARECO has been working with local companies with whom we have a cooperative relationship. We were among the first to comply with RoHS requirements and to report on the ADEME WEEE website.
ARECO manufactures its equipment in France, and forges strong long-term partnerships with suppliers who respect the same spirit. 90% of industrial purchases are made in France, 67% of which are in the Alpes-Maritimes department in order to contribute to the development of the local economy and reduce CO2 emissions (transport…).
At the local level, ARECO is part of business networks and supports small businesses or job seekers.
The technologies of smart management for fresh departments developed by ARECO allow a drastic reduction of waste. They contribute to saving the planet’s resources. Since its creation, the company has been in a virtuous model: fighting against programmed obsolescence by guaranteeing the nebulisation systems for life. All ARECO products are repairable and can be upgraded over time. Some devices are more than 15 years old but have been constantly updated as part of our maintenance contracts.
In 2007, the construction of our new premises was the occasion to make them an example of comfort and energy saving. This project was selected by the French organism ADEME as one of the 100 outstanding projects in the PACA region. It is low-consumption certified and recognised as HQE (High Environmental Quality) building for its thermal performance and optimised water management. Its low consumption has been controlled over several seasons.
The design of more energy-efficient machines is one of the company’s daily challenges. Investments in Research and Development are aimed in particular at innovating in environmentally friendly products, including the latest, Nebuleco, which reduces water and electricity consumption by 30% compared to equivalent machines on the market. They are also two and a half times lighter, which improves the comfort of our technicians on-site, and helps to reduce their impact during transport.
ARECO’s environmental approach includes, for example, reducing the carbon footprint.
More than 50% of the company’s workforce is on-site in contact with customers. Since the launch of the CSR approach, there has been a 35% reduction in fossil energy use thanks to the optimisation of the company’s transport policy. This gain has been achieved on several levels: optimisation of commercial and technical tours, vehicle change, reduction of the machine failure rate thanks to improvements in the quality and efficiency of our products…
ARECO, in its CSR approach, is implementing better working conditions for its employees, both in terms of their workstations and their collective benefits. The current model allows to have long-term local jobs.
This common dynamic fully involves all the employees in this sustainable approach so that they, themselves, can be the direct actors.
At ARECO, gender diversity and professional equality between women and men are at the heart of our values. Therefore, we are the first company in the Alpes Maritimes department (in France) to have received the Afnor Professional Equality label in 2016, renewed in 2019.
A change in the business model:
Towards an economy of functionality
To face the 2009 crisis, ARECO started to implement a new business model to support its customers in this recessionary phase. By offering a subscription system, without time commitment, rather than a “classic” sale, ARECO allows its customers to equip their fresh departments with nebulisation systems while preserving their cash flow. A win-win solution for both parties. This is the first step towards the economy of functionality.
The pioneering and innovative company has always offered products with a lifetime guarantee. ARECO now markets solutions for the performance of fresh food departments, including products and services, rather than the sale of the product itself. The offers are gradually focusing on the functionalities provided by the use of the product. Thus, the company offers a global solution for the use of its products, including improving the conservation of fresh products, training staff on the department, displaying information on products and recipes for cooking them.
This economic model has allowed us to set up a circular economy since it makes it possible to extend the life of the product, facilitates its reuse and its recycling. It improves the attractiveness of fresh products, encourages their consumption and reduces food waste. This business model of evolutive and no-commitment subscription (we are trusting the customer satisfaction) can be enhanced with technological innovations, customer needs and consumer demands evolve. These services may also vary throughout the year depending on the regional or seasonal nature of the customer’s sales profile.
By offering a global solution to enhance the value of fresh products departments, ARECO encourages consumers to increase their consumption of fresh products as a substitute for processed industrial products. This results in environmental impacts, including the reduction of food waste in stores and among end consumers through the dissemination of information on product use (conservation methods, recipes…).
The economy of functionality is a real revolution in the traditional sales business model. It is therefore a sustainable innovation that brings true environmental and social benefits to all.
