A business of the heart

Technologies Ecofixe and Loop Mission are family businesses that are driven by the great ideas of their founders, engraved at the heart of their purpose. From family culture to corporate culture, the transmission of authentic values is the great strength of this model.

“My father worked in the wastewater sector for nearly 20 years,” says Marisol Labrecque. “He witnessed the problems that would affect aerated ponds in the years to come. He talked to us about it at home and we grew up with this concern for protecting our environment. He had this great hope that it was possible to create a company that would be both good for society and profitable. We imagined and founded Technologies Ecofixe together.”

Julie Poitras-Saulnier also had a big dream, but she needed support to make it happen. “One day, on a Ferris wheel, I met the man who would become my spouse and business partner, David Côté. He was as passionate about sustainable development as I was, and he was already an entrepreneur. He had co-founded Crudessence and Rise Kombucha.” Another happy coincidence would seal the company’s fate.

The vice-president of Courchesne Larose, the largest distributor of fruits and vegetables and now the third co-founder of LOOP, concerned about the impact of his company, contacted them: “he told us how much he was forced to throw away,” says Julie. “All three of us were concerned about the importance of reducing food waste. It’s not for nothing that we’re called LOOP Mission .”

A need in the market

In the food industry, as in other sectors, companies must pay to get rid of their residual materials: $100 per tonne in landfills. In the country, more than half of fruits and vegetables are thrown away. The circular economy therefore makes perfect sense. “There is value in loss!” announces Julie. We save fruits and vegetables by transforming them in multiple ways, and we even recycle the residual pulp.”

Obviously, LOOP had to learn how to do it, then test and market it. “Apart from adjusting our labels and recipes to please more taste buds, we didn’t need to educate consumers. On the contrary, that’s what they were waiting for,” says Julie, delighted. “Today, we have more than 3,000 points of sale across the country, including major chains like Sobey’s, IGA and Métro.”

As for wastewater treatment, it should be noted that Quebec is reaching maximum capacity, meaning that the basins have reached their flow limit in relation to the population. Municipalities no longer have the capacity to grow; they can no longer build streets for new homes, for example. And it's the same for industrial companies. Technologies Ecofixe's mission is to optimize and give a second life to existing facilities without having to change or expand existing infrastructure, while minimizing the footprint.

Expertise and impact

Ecofixe Technologies has developed an ecological solution without chemicals and with less energy-intensive equipment. “In addition to the current limitations of aerated ponds, wastewater treatment, as it is designed today, corresponds to 25 to 30% of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of municipalities; it is their second most polluting activity,” laments Marisol. In collaboration with Quebec research centers, she has managed to develop solutions that increase treatment capacity by 20 to 60% by submerging modules that use biomass (natural bacteria) in existing ponds. This makes it possible to treat a greater organic load and extend the lifespan of existing ponds by 10 to 15 years more.

For LOOP, it is the logistics of rejected food that has become their expertise. “Obviously, there are a lot of variations in our raw materials,” explains Julie. “With small suppliers, it is okay to bring different products, depending on what we receive. We can receive tons of grapes one week, and another it will be pineapples. We don’t know in advance. But with the big chains, I can’t play with that.” LOOP is constantly adapting its production.

Julie also had to find new strategies. "In order to save even more fruits and vegetables, we decided to process them differently and act as an intermediary. My ripe strawberries are reduced to powder or pasteurized puree with a long shelf life, usable by other companies." With 20,000 tons of surplus annually and manufacturers who need perfectly imperfect raw materials, the branch Loop Synergies was born.

Outlook: growth assured

For both companies, the future is bright. For Ecofixe, the growth potential is enormous. The company has just received the Solar Impulse Foundation label, which supports a thousand clean, profitable and efficient solutions that contribute to making ecology the driving force of the economy.

As for LOOP, which initially only made cold-pressed juices with perfectly imperfect fruits, it has grown rapidly by keeping its core mission in mind. Juices became its flagship product, then LOOP has grown to 33 different products and has just acquired a new factory. And it continues to push the circular economy further with beers made from day-old bread, a gin made from potato scraps, and even soaps made from recycled cooking oil from a vegan chain.

Julie receives requests to replicate her model all over the world. "We are starting our first exports to the United States and we are talking about developing partners in Europe and as far as Australia," exclaims with joy the one who has just become a young mother and who sees her mission coming true on the planet, happy to be able to inspire change.