Do you know French Agen prunes? Around 40 000 tonnes of it are produced every year in France! Bad jokes part, you all probably know that those little prunes are good for your transit. But that’s not their only quality! According to the Prune Museum, this small and ovoid fruit is also rich in potassium, magnesium and a great antioxidant! I promise, there is no hidden chemistry lecture in this article. If these prune are only full of good stuff, what about their inside: their stones?
Manal and Olivia, the founders of Les Candides, ask themself a lot of questions such as “Why are there so many ingredients in our cosmetics?”, “How to insure a good traceability of ingredients?” and also “What happens to the prunes’ stones?”. There are people like that! Through their brand of natural cosmetics, they have answered those questions and have also investigated for us the fate of those almond-shaped stones. Usually, prunes’ stones, also called prunes’ kernels, is a non valued by-product of the food industrie. In their research for raw material to use in their natural cosmetics, Manal and Olivia have learned about this waste and its properties. They have discovered the work of Nathalie in the French Region, Lot et Garonne. She works to give a second life to prunes’ kernels from her region. Using a cold press technique she turns the kernels into a virgin oil that is used in manufacturing of the Olympe collection of Les Candides. And it makes your skin flexible and soft as a prune’s one! Because those little kernel are rich in Omega 9! Your skin is soft and the loop is closed!
This story shows that circular economy can be applied between products and by-products from different industries. The more cross-industry bridges are built, the more possibilities there will be to reuse each others by-products. This by-product of the food industry is now feeding your pink cheeks: thousand like kernels to soften your skin. Thanks to the responsible and dedicated approach of Les Candides’ founders, a new step towards a more local and circular economy has been taken. The next steps for them? Using leftover fibers as an exfoliating raw material in a future cosmetic line, to check soon on their website…
Manal and Olivia are Candids but not Naïves! Meeting them has shown us that it is worth it to dig deep into things, especially to reach more circularity.