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The sweet taste of sustainability

For Puratos, it all started in 1919 in a garage in Laeken, near Brussels. Since then, the company has expanded to 61 countries and serves bakers and chocolatiers – both industrial and artisanal – in over a hundred countries.

Despite its international reach, Puratos remains a family-owned business with its main shareholders being two Belgian families and one Spanish family. “Innovation and sustainability have been in our DNA from the very beginning,” says Jean-Philippe Michaux, the company’s Chief Financial Officer. “Over 60 years ago, Puratos was the first manufacturer of bread improvers. And we’ve continued to innovate ever since. Every year, we invest around 2.4% of our profits in research and development.”

R&D for bakers 

Jean-Philippe Michaux takes us to the R&D department. “Across 6,000 m², we have around 500 researchers – mostly bioengineers – working daily to improve our products. Worldwide, one in nine of our employees, which we have over 9,000, works in research and development. Why do we need it? If you’ve ever tried to make a loaf of bread or a cake, you know how challenging it is. Think of a beautiful multi-layer cake covered with fruit: if you don’t follow certain steps, it could collapse!” he laughs.

“We also design solutions for industrial applications. When you’re making cakes and pastries, for example, you can’t simply multiply the amount of ingredients while using the same process.”

The Cacao-Trace programme 

Puratos’ shareholders and management are committed to the long term: a 20-year timeframe is not unusual. “That’s the only way to work sustainably,” says the CFO. “We focus on six key aspects: sustainable sourcing, health, heritage, people, communities and the environment.” 

“We have a sustainable purchasing policy and we select reliable suppliers of fruit, cocoa, palm oil and animal products, whose supply chain we can follow in an ethical manner. We are particularly proud of Cacao-Trace, our cocoa sustainability programme. Cacao-Trace’s ongoing efforts benefit everyone, especially cocoa producers, as we pay them a quality bonus directly. This ensures we get superior-tasting chocolate in return. Additionally, cocoa producers receive a “chocolate bonus” of 10 cents per kilo of chocolate sold. The entire process is very transparent. This win-win programme was funded with the help of our long-standing partner, BNP Paribas Fortis.” 

Sustainable loan  

Jean-Philippe Michaux ends by talking about the environment, one of the key aspects already mentioned. In 2021, Puratos took out a €75 million loan from BNP Paribas Fortis, the interest rate on which is linked to the achievement of annual CO₂ reduction targets. “We’re aiming to be CO₂-neutral by 2025,” says the CFO. “It’s a heavy investment, but it will pay off over the long term. One way we’re achieving our target by covering our roofs with solar panels. Where possible, we’re building wind turbines. And in Belgium, we’re moving towards fully electric or hybrid vehicles.”