Swiss pioneer Beelong gathers pace

Based at the EHL Innovation HUB in Epalinges, Beelong is on a roll. The Swiss startup founded in 2014 by Charlotte de La Baume and Mathias Faigaux is convinced that better information for catering professionals and consumers is an essential element to address current climate issues. Six months ago, they announced a collaboration with Coop and raised the impact of eco labelling to a whole new level.

Contacted by Startupticker.ch, Charlotte de La Baume, co-founder and CEO of Beelong, explains that more than 2,000 of the Swiss retailer's products have already been evaluated with the ECO-SCORE method, and that the results were published on the retailer's online store in October 2022. Since January of this year, the ECO-SCORE is being printed on the packaging. Today, many products already display it. The ultimate goal is to evaluate and communicate the ECO-SCORE on the packaging of all Coop branded products by 2026.

Although it is still too early to know the feedback from consumers and draw conclusions, Charlotte de La Baume tells us that the initial feedback from Coop is positive. The retailer appreciates being able to rely on a credible and responsive external partner.

Choosing better for the environment

With 30% of the environmental damage generated in Switzerland by food (Source: Federal Office for the Environment FOEN, 2011), restaurant owners and food industry actors (producers, processors, distributors, etc.) have a crucial role to address the current climate issues and contribute to the ecological transition of our food and agriculture.

At a glance, Beelong’s ECO-SCORE method allows consumers to compare and choose their food according to its environmental impact. Thanks to a reliable and constantly evolving analysis method, the Beelong method takes into account many criteria according to the list of ingredients and their quantity: CO2, water, soil, biodiversity, endangered species, animal welfare, etc. Other criteria are then applied to the finished product, such as the impact of the packaging and the sustainability policy of the processing company.

Roll-out to new markets next 

Driven by the growing visibility and impact, Beelong intends to speed up its growth. The next steps for startup are the roll-out to new markets abroad via key strategic partners as well as via some of its customers. Other priorities are the development of new tools to better support its industrial partners in the eco-design of their products, the continuous improvement of the ECO-SCORE calculation methodology, as well as the consolidation of its processes and growth management.

Beelong is already well established with professionals in the Swiss restaurant and food industry. Employing 20 people, the company works for some 60 partner brands (Hero, Narimpex, Ditzler, Kadi, etc.) and more than 300 public or private collective restaurants (health institutions, company restaurants,  school canteens, etc.). It also advises private companies, municipalities, cantons and the Confederation on the development of sustainable food strategies.

(ES)