Cloth napkins are being updated to reduce waste in corporate catering
The goal? To replace the approximately 72,000 paper napkins used and discarded each year in the La Canopée company restaurant, managed by Ansamble, a player in sustainable collective catering.
Environmental issues are a core concern for Léa Nature, a French manufacturer of organic and natural products. For the 2024 Christmas gift offered to employees at the head office, Léa Nature wanted to add a useful and original gift. In collaboration with La Serviette de Table , Léa Nature's General Management and Ethics Committee offered all their employees two high-quality fabric napkins, made in France.
This choice marks an exemplary approach to replacing the approximately 72,000 paper napkins consumed each year at the La Canopée company restaurant at the Bio'Pôle de Léa. Although recyclable and compostable, their excessive quantity means they are destined for incineration. This initiative embodies the environmental and societal values dear to Léa Nature and Ansamble. Bringing your cloth napkin to La Canopée is part of a circular economy and waste reduction approach.
A simple gesture for a lasting impact
Following an internal survey, more than 80% of Léa Nature employees who regularly shop at La Canopée declared themselves in favor of using cloth napkins. This reflects a desire to participate in transforming usage, preserving resources, and reducing waste.
Starting in January 2025, the gradual adoption of cloth napkins in this company restaurant confirms Léa Nature's commitment to promoting eco-friendly actions on a daily basis. The goal is also to inspire other companies using La Canopée to adopt these sustainable practices.
Swarming and transforming uses in collective catering
Ansamble fully supports this initiative and intends to spread it to its other collective restaurants. This dissemination aims to further reduce the use of paper napkins and the waste they generate.
La Serviette de Table, a local and supportive commitment
“Bringing the fabric napkin back to life” is the motto of La Serviette de Table . Founded by Emmanuelle Robin, this young Lille-based company recycles end-of-roll napkins, unused tablecloths and fabric scraps from the major linen manufacturers in the North of France.
The result? Unique, aesthetically pleasing towels steeped in history, carefully crafted in vocational training workshops. Each towel is customizable with a label that allows the owner's name to be written on it, encouraging sustainable and responsible use.
About Léa Nature
A family business based in La Rochelle, Léa Nature is a major player in the food industry, organic and natural cosmetics, and eco-friendly cleaning products. With 2,000 employees, it places environmental protection and solidarity at the heart of its actions and values.
About Ansamble
Anchored in the region, Ansamble strives to promote the economy of the catchment areas by prioritizing local and regional production, supporting health-oriented sectors and respecting biodiversity and seasonality. Committed to healthy and natural food, Ansamble naturally moved towards the status of a mission-driven company and renewed its commitment to Mon Restau Responsable ® at La Canopée. Ansamble, in figures: 16 culinary workshops, 343 restaurants and more than 4,400 nurseries, 2,544 employees, 205,000 guests served every day.