No more treading on eggshells due to CO₂

Ferme Prim’Vert is managing to solve a logistical challenge in a sustainable way thanks to a CNG-powered Scania. The egg producer from Sundgau, not far from the Swiss border, now offers carbon-neutral delivery of its eggs to customers and 120 shops in the region.

In Switzerland, Hosberg AG from the Zurich Oberland, Switzerland’s largest marketer of organic and Demeter-certified eggs, not only handles the fragile natural product with care, it transports it in an environmentally friendly way thanks to the use of an Iveco S-Way with CNG drive and biogas-filled tank. But these eggs are by no means the only ones to reach customers and shops throughout Europe in a near carbon-neutral way. Ferme Prim’Vert in Alsace, France, also attaches great importance to sustainability.

Since 2000, Ferme Prim’Vert in Sundgau, not far from the Swiss border, has been producing eggs “from the region for the region,” as founder André Bastady explains. His farm worked for a client in the gastronomy sector for a long time before said client entered into a partnership with another producer in 2016. As a result, Bastady was suddenly confronted with a surplus of eggs that had to be discarded. “I went to the nearby Leclerc supermarket and then to the Hyper U,” recalls André Bastady. “They were immediately interested.” Other large supermarkets followed. In order to meet the increasing demand, Prim’Vert, which has since grown into a single company, now brings together twelve farms and is building additional chicken coops to enable it to produce as close to its customers and 120 stores as possible.

The new Scania with CNG drive with which the eggs of Ferme Prim’Vert can now be delivered almost CO₂-neutral. Source: Scania/Ferme Prim’Vert

Its rapid growth has meant that Ferme Prim’Vert has also had to face new logistical challenges in ensuring that its eggs are collected and delivered. They are collected and checked centrally at the packing point at headquarters before being delivered to our various customers. “Today we have six vans and three trucks,” explains Bastady. Now a brand new Scania G410 with CNG drive is also being used to transport eggs.

“Today, the major retail chains are urging hauliers to reduce their carbon footprint,” reveals Stéphane Sittler, head of Scania Alsace in Sausheim. “The decision to opt for CNG or biogas allows them to obtain the “Crit’Air 1” vehicle sticker. This means that the CNG truck will be able to operate in the environmental zones that would otherwise only be accessible for mobility and that are currently being set up across the country – especially in Strasbourg.”

André Bastady, founder of Ferme Prim’Vert, talking to an operator of the now twelve farms that produce eggs for his company. Source: Ferme Prim’Vert

Most importantly, biogas is also a good solution for a company with a strong sense of corporate social responsibility. This is because Ferme Prim’Vert only feeds its poultry with European and GMO-free soya, has air conditioning for its facilities which does not require the use of highly toxic Freon and uses photovoltaic modules to generate the energy for its cooling units. “If nobody does anything, then nothing happens,” says Bastady. “With this CNG vehicle, we are now close to perfection. It’s like sitting in a real living room,” adds the boss with satisfaction. No wonder, as he also likes to stand in for his drivers when they are on their holidays and swap the steering wheel of his SUV for that of the CNG-powered Scania. “It’s no longer my job, but I love it. And this technology has more than won me over!” (pd/jas, 4 October 2022)

André Bastady is so enthusiastic about his new CNG truck that he sometimes even gets back behind the wheel himself. Source: Scania