The Bonduelle site in the Aube region is committed to a global CSR approach
Did you know? The Bonduelle Group has 11 sites in France, including one in Aube, at Saint-Benoist-sur-Vanne. Acquired in 1997, the Aube factory now employs more than 140 permanent staff and 70 seasonal workers. With an annual capacity of 16,000 tonnes, it produces over 30 recipes across 6 production lines.
A New Director at the Aube Site
Thomas Potier assumed his role in May 2022. A graduate of the École Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers in industrial management engineering, he started in the metallurgy industry. In 2015, he moved to South Champagne and worked for LISI Aerospace. He is currently pursuing a Global Executive MBA in business administration at IAE Paris Sorbonne while managing the Bonduelle Aube factory. The company is heavily involved in the local economic fabric thanks to its engagement with the Association of Food Companies of the Champagne-Ardenne territory, the Club of Industrial Ecology of Aube, and the Convergence employers’ group.
Thomas Potier highlights the advantages of the territory for Bonduelle: “The Grand Est region is a significant agricultural land with many partners established for generations, like the farm of Hauts de Villiers. We are also fortunate to have the support of industrialists such as STEF for transportation, storage, and order preparation while maintaining the cold chain nearby, and of course aid for the renovation and modernization of our equipment, particularly for positive cold generation, crucial for our activity.”
Strong Values Around Food, the Planet, and People
Bonduelle aims to actively engage in today’s and tomorrow’s CSR challenges, hence it acts on matters such as French origin, biodiversity preservation, reducing pesticides and additives, organic farming, and responsible packaging.
“The goal is to raise awareness to sustain the company through major themes: agriculture and raw materials, employee welfare, environmental respect, and the well-being of the planet and people,” explains Thomas Potier.
This is concretely implemented through the “B!Pact”, Bonduelle’s CSR program. The goal is to achieve “B Corp” certification by 2025, based on societal and environmental standards.
“At Saint-Benoist-sur-Vanne, for example, we are exploring water-saving solutions. In less than 10 years, our consumption has been halved. We are also seeking ways to valorise or even reuse waste,” illustrates Thomas Potier.
Business Sud Champagne, an Asset to Strengthen Bonduelle’s Local Ties and Development
Already aware of its role in accelerating projects, the director of the Aube factory approached the South Champagne economic development agency for new optimization or growth avenues in line with its local territory. Through internal workshops led by BSC, the company aims to confront its current operations and present and future challenges with an external expert view, that of the agency. A comprehensive review of the company was conducted with service managers covering raw materials, range and new products, productivity, energy savings, logistical flows, seasonality/human resources, job attractiveness, service providers, existing or desired partnerships – all themes that strengthen the company’s local ties.
“This joint work also allows sharing trends, refining potential threats and opportunities to anticipate and build the best ways to meet the company’s challenges, and moreover, by strengthening the local ecosystem,” emphasizes Philippe Charmont, Manager of Business and Territorial Development. “Business Sud Champagne is both, invaluable help for connecting and developing all economic actors in the sector, and also for prospecting and establishing new key players essential to our activities, currently absent from the territory,” adds the Bonduelle director.
Bonduelle is Hiring!
“Since my appointment, I have initiated efforts to create ties with local actors to work on the Aube employment basin. Our site is still too unknown to the
