Actions on biodiversity
- Commitment #8 -
Focus 2022
Protection of the oceans
As a major player in the textile industry, CEPOVETT is committed to actively fight for the protection of water resources, oceans and marine biodiversity.
A pollution often "invisible" that will last for decades in the oceans. Nearly 500,000 tons per year of microfibers would thus go down the drain of washing machines, some of which would end up in the sea. These microfibers and microplastics are particularly dangerous for small marine organisms that mistake them for food. In 2018, the "seventh continent" of plastic, a huge vortex located halfway between Hawaii and California composed of 80% of plastics from land, occupied 3.5 million km2 in the Pacific Ocean, or 750,000 pieces of debris per km2. In total, at least 1,800 billion pieces of plastic waste are polluting the oceans and affecting 267 marine species. A reason for CEPOVETT to lead the fight for a more environmentally friendly textile industry.
Focus 2021
Madagascar, a biodiversity hotspot
Madagascar is one of the 10 hot spots of the world's biological diversity. Home to more than 250,000 species, 70% of which are endemic, the island has 294 species of birds and 247 species of amphibians.
Its gigantic baobabs (of which 7 species can be found on the island), its exceptional primates - such as lemurs - or its cultural heritage make Madagascar a territory of rich and unique biodiversity, where an extraordinary fauna and flora have flourished for thousands of years. Its tropical rainforests (in the east of the country) and dry forests (in the south and west) are home to exceptional ecosystems unfortunately subjected to years of deforestation have weakened its biotope. So many reasons to preserve these spaces and to engage in a reforestation program. The protection of biodiversity plays an essential role in the fight against climate change. Ecosystems are important carbon sinks and allow living organisms to adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Focus 2020
An experimental apiary in Madagascar
In 15 years, 30% of bee colonies have disappeared. In order to curb this plague, CEPOVETT-EPSILON has started beekeeping production in Madagascar. The production site has 13 Malagasy hives and 11 modern hives including two very sophisticated Australian models. This new model of hive has a transparent wall allowing to check the level of honey contained in the hive without opening it. Pre-formed transparent plastic cells installed on the frames with a tap are able to open in two to allow harvesting. When the bees have done their part, all that is left to do is to open a tap and the honey will flow. This new "FLOW-HIVE" method is gentler and less dangerous for the bees and avoids stress or crushing them. With the 4 frames that the employees collected, they were able to fill 17 small jars with honey.
Focus 2019
CEPOVETT Group contributes to the fight against the Varroa mite
Varroa destructor, a parasitic mite of bees, is an endemic disease that strikes our hives and decimates our bees. An experimental solution is to select Varroa-resistant bees, called VSH bees for "Varroa Senstivie Hygienic". The idea of the beekeeper Didier Brick and about forty volunteer beekeepers in Belgium, is to create queens carrying this VSH character. Initiated in 2015 in the Benelux, this project has inspired CEPOVETT Group which will conduct, during spring 2019, a genetic selection experiment on a dozen queens carrying VSH. This initiative underlines the company's commitment to the preservation of biodiversity and the protection of bees.
Focus 2018
CEPOVETT Group Bee Compatible biodiversity program
In July 2016, 40 years after its big sister known as the "Nature Protection Act", the law for the reconquest of biodiversity, nature and landscapes was finally adopted by the national assembly. Providing a home for bees is one of CEPOVETT Group's major biodiversity projects launched in 2013. The "Bee compatible" project is to install beehives on the different sites of the company to raise awareness about the disappearance of this pollinating insect around the world.
In 2017, from the rooftops of Paris to Madagascar, corporate honey is still in the spotlight at CEPOVETT Group. Several visits to apiaries and honey tasting sessions were organized at the different sites in Villefranche and Paris. An approach that is as original as it is environmental, and which has won over the stakeholders. In 2018, a new initiative blends art and biodiversity, through urban beehives decorated by a collective of artists and personalized.
Focus 2017
2017 Report
In July 2016, 40 years after its big sister known as the "Nature Protection Act", the law for the reconquest of biodiversity, nature and landscapes was finally adopted by the national assembly. Providing a home for bees is one of CEPOVETT Group's major biodiversity projects launched in 2013. The "Bee'compatible" project is to install beehives on the different sites of the company to raise awareness about the disappearance of this pollinating insect around the world. In 2016, the experimentation continues with the implementation of a traditional apiary in Madagascar, the company's production site. The island is one of the 10 "hot spots" of biological diversity, so CEPOVETT Group has decided to contribute to the preservation of local biodiversity by installing beehives near its reforestation areas. Several types of hives were tested in the experimental apiary combining tradition (Kenyan hive) and modernity (Flow Hive), an automatic hive with a tap that allows the honey to be collected without opening the hive. All of the company's sites actively involve their employees in this genuine sustainable development action in favor of biodiversity. Nearly fifty customers have already been able to visit the different apiaries of the company and taste the CEPOVETT Group honey put in pots by the employees themselves. An original way of understanding and sharing biodiversity issues with its stakeholders.
Focus 2016
A biodiversity program led by employees
CEPOVETT Group has made the bee a lever to mobilize its employees in favor of biodiversity. Based on the fact that the pollinating insect is more at ease in the city than in the countryside, CEPOVETT Group has installed several apiaries on its sites in France and abroad, including in Paris. The management of the apiary thus unites all employees, from the general management to the staff, around a meaningful project that gives rise to an important event each year during the honey harvest. The company honey is then packaged by the employees in jars with the company's image. In 2015, CEPOVETT Group invited its stakeholders to visit the apiaries to raise awareness of the importance of saving bees for the preservation of biodiversity. These visits are convivial moments of exchange during which the collaborators can transmit their knowledge and make taste the product of their harvest. A jar of honey is offered to each participant to symbolically transmit this commitment.
