Carrefour : and Gastromotiva create Innovation Lab

A partner of the NGO's since 2015, the Carrefour Foundation renews support for initiatives in social gastronomy and education, also launching a project that will develop zero-waste recipes and product lines

Rio de Janeiro, July 2018 - On Monday (July 9), the Carrefour Brazil Group, through its international Foundation, launches a new project with Gastromotiva, an NGO that uses social gastronomy to promote inclusion and sustainability. With an investment of around 320 thousand euros, the initiative foresees the creation of the first Gastromotiva Innovation Laboratory, a space dedicated to the study and development of zero-waste recipes. In addition to financial support, the company will curate the development of a product line that will be marketed by the Rio-based NGO. The Carrefour Foundation's backing includes the renewal of support for two other projects begun in 2015, focusing on youth and adult education and training and social gastronomy.

Based in Rio de Janeiro (RJ), the Innovation Laboratory is headquartered in the teaching restaurant, Reffetorio Gastromotiva. This is where recipes will be created by dozens of the NGO's students based on waste-free use of fruit and vegetables, making sauces, preserves and cakes, for example. By the end of this year, recipes developed by the Innovation Laboratory will go through a selection process and five of them will go into the new, exclusive line of food products under the Gastromotiva brand. The production process for each item will consider the full use of ingredients, in addition to prioritizing their nutritional value and differentials such as low sugar, sodium and fat content.

Besides curating the production process for the items, the Carrefour Brazil Group will contribute technical support for the development of a business plan and management of the new product line. Through this project, Gastromotiva will have a new source of income from the sale of these items. Support for the Innovation Laboratory will also result in the production of videos through which the NGO will share its knowledge about combating food waste and social gastronomy with various audiences.

Its renewal of support for and development of the new project with Gastromotiva is in line with Carrefour's transformation plan, 'Carrefour 2022,' announced in January. Among the main objectives of the new global strategy is leading food transition, through which the company wants to enable its customers to consume better, higher quality, safe and socio-environmentally responsible food.

This year the company also renews its support for two other social projects run by the Gastromotiva NGO since 2015. Through its international Foundation, the company will continue to contribute to the training of young people and adults in the world of gastronomy - an initiative that has trained about 270 people in the last three years. In addition, the Carrefour Group will also continue to support the social gastronomy project that, since 2016, offers free meals at Reffetorio Gastromotiva for people in socially vulnerable situations in Rio de Janeiro (RJ). This year, 18,000 people are expected to benefit from the project, totaling 54,000 free meals, saving 41 tons of food from being wasted.