legumes, beneficial for the environment, are booming

To replace meat on consumers’ plates, lentils, chickpeas and beans are appearing more and more often. Legumes are eating up market share: their consumption has increased by 7% in six years. A brand highlights these plant proteins to offer an alternative to meat, while a kilo of beef generates 50 times more CO2 than a kilo of peas.

Crops beneficial to nature

“We have a 12% increase in our sales in this department (…). We are able to bring the customer to this somewhat cultural change”, assures Bertrand Swiderski, sustainable development director of the Carrefour group. A cooperative has invested in legumes, with a machine that sorts them with precision. The sector is gaining momentum, but the path to get there is sometimes difficult. For three years, a pulse producer has been struggling to make a profit. The alternation of heavy rains and severe droughts has weakened its production.

Legumes do not need fertilizer and are beneficial to the environment. According to Alain Choclazeur, legume producer and organic farmer, “insects come back, which are interesting for crops.” Legumes also help naturally fertilize the soil.