In the past years, BENEO teamed up with Raffinerie Tirlemontoise, part of Südzucker Sugar Division, a leading European sugar supplier and Puratos, a global leader in bakery, patisserie, and chocolate ingredients, to launch a pioneering Climate Farming Project. The ambitious initiative supports Belgian farmers in implementing more sustainable farming practices. Within the project, 15 pilot farms across Belgium cultivate sugar beet, wheat and chicory according to various regenerative farming methods in an area equivalent to the size of more than 1,100 football fields. To learn more about the project, I sat down with Jean Franc, Agronomy Strategic Development Manager at BENEO.
To kick things off, can you please shortly introduce yourself and your role at BENEO?
Jean Franc: My name is Jean Franc and I have been working at BENEO for 26 years already. As the company’s Agronomy Strategic Development Manager, one of my main responsibilities is driving sustainable practices in agriculture and in particular the development of regenerative agriculture. By the way, the term “regenerative agriculture” refers to cultivation methods that contribute to enhancing soil health and reducing the environmental impact of farming.
In your view, what makes BENEO a strong partner when sourcing products coming from agriculture?
BENEO is a division of Südzucker Group, a leading integrated group that harnesses the power of plants for a wide range of products. The entire Group processes more than 30 million tonnes of renewable agricultural raw materials per year. This means BENEO and our sister companies, including our project partner Raffinerie Tirlemontoise, are key buyers of agricultural products in many countries. Importantly, we are strongly interconnected with farmers who supply us with the crops we process at our production sites. This exceptional link with our farmers enables us to not only buy products from them, but to also jointly shape the evolution of agricultural practices together.
Why is regenerative agriculture an important component for a more sustainable future?
Belgian agricultural practices already rank among the best worldwide – and we are proud of that. Still, at BENEO, we believe there is room to improve. Our goal: help create a more sustainable world for future generations.
To achieve this, key farming practices must evolve further. These include reducing tillage, limiting fertiliser and pesticide use, and increasing organic matter in the soil. Practices like these all fall under the umbrella of regenerative agriculture. Such methods help improve soil quality and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions related to farming.
Agriculture plays a key role in lowering the environmental impact of food and feed production. At BENEO, we are committed to making a difference. Supporting farmers in climate resilience and regenerative methods is a core goal of our sustainability strategy – the ‘Healthy Planet Plan’.
With our plant-based functional ingredients, derived from natural sources like sugar beet, chicory root, wheat, rice or faba beans, we offer our customers healthier and nutritious options for food and feed products. But it’s clear that to do so, we need our planet to be healthy as well. That’s why sourcing crops in a healthy, i.e., sustainable way, simply makes sense.
What is the greatest benefit of strategic partnerships, like the Climate Farming Project with Südzucker, BENEO and Puratos, when it comes to sustainable farming?
Working with pilot farms in a project like this offers the clear benefit of collaborating with a group of highly motivated farmers who are willing to test new farming methods together. We are not forcing anyone to implement certain practices but are providing interested farmers a framework to make new experiences with regenerative methods. This allows them to also have a clear evaluation at the end to decide which methods are worth being implemented long-term.
Another clear advantage is that we will share the results of this pilot group with all our contracted farmers, demonstrating opportunities for improvement or tips to avoid failure. After all, knowing what did not work or might be too risky is also of great value for the farmer community. This exchange of know-how and experience allows us to scale-up the effect of successful practices to a much larger group of farmers.
Last but not least, partnering with industrial customers is a great benefit in such farming projects. That’s because real change is impossible if farmers must take unreasonable risks and bear all the costs alone. Partnership between the industry and farmers is thus powerful and the key to success.
What is your key takeaway for BENEO from the Climate Farming Project together with Südzucker and Puratos?
This project demonstrated that sustainable practices that are feasible for farmers can bring added value to the entire value chain, including end consumers
Farmers and their concerns need to be understood and supported in a safe environment to overcome the pressing challenges of climate change and securing their livelihoods. We, as food and feed industry, together with our customers must be active partners in making the transition to more sustainable agriculture a reality.
What’s one thing that makes you proud when you think of BENEO’s role in the industry in terms of regenerative agriculture?
At BENEO, contributing to a more sustainable world and a healthier planet is more than just words – it’s a genuine commitment. We are excited to actively be part of the solution, which is really exciting – and makes me proud to be a part of.
Thanks a lot for sharing your insights and for being an ambassador of regenerative agriculture within BENEO and beyond!