Parfums Christian Dior, Givenchy Parfums and Kenzo Parfums support French farmers from Cristal Union in the agroecological transition of the beetroot sector

Parfums Christian Dior, Givenchy Parfums and Kenzo Parfums, Maisons of the LVMH group, announce their strategic collaboration with Cristal Union with the objective to improve the agricultural practices in the beetroot sector, from which the alcohol in its perfumes is sourced.

Cristal Union is a French agricultural cooperative that brings together more than 9,000 beetroot growers and employs more than 2,000 people to produce and market sugar, alcohol and bioethanol.

This year, the three Houses are financing a project aimed at supporting the agroecological transition of 380 hectares of beetroot cultivation in the east of France to produce the equivalent of 45% of their alcohol needs*.

This project is based on the Regeneration Index, a tool developed and verified by the association “Pour une Agriculture du Vivant”, to assess the agro-ecological score of farms and to support farmers on their path to progress.

“This collaboration sets an important milestone on the path traced by the LIFE 360 program towards the regeneration of 5 million hectares of ecosystems. Beetroots hold a prominent place in the supply chain of the LVMH Beauty business group. The implementation of new, virtuous production models in this sector represents a key step on the way to our commitments,” highlights Hélène Valade, Environmental Development Director of the LVMH group.

In addition, and for a period of five years, LVMH finances a Research & Development program with Cristal Union within 12 farms with the objective to test new agronomical practices with a particular focus on:

• Reducing nitrogen inputs in beetroot cultivation by optimizing cover crops.
• Limiting the addition of fertilizers of mineral origin through an increased use of organic matter.

“At Cristal Union, we attach great importance to agronomic R&D and tailor-made support for our cooperative members in the development of their agricultural practices. Our collaboration with LVMH in this new project, dedicated to the development of agroecology techniques, is part of this approach. ” declares Bruno Labilloy, Agricultural Director of Cristal Union.

As part of these trials, the three Maisons will work with Genesis, selected by the Maison des Start-ups LVMH and awarded at VivaTech for its tool measuring the health and quality of soils. Genesis will be in charge of collecting precise data about soil health on a regular and geolocated basis in order to assess the impact of agricultural practices on their health and their contribution to ecosystem functions.

* “Mass balance” approach