Ecoveritas S.A.

Veritas “the right way to eat

Wednesday 3 June 2009, by Claudia Brotons, Irene Vidaller, Juan Gasso, Julia Martinez

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The main facts about the activities of the company

Nowadays people care more and more about the food they eat and how it arrives to their plates. Hence Veritas, an ecological food supermarket chain, is created to satisfy the needs of all these people. Its objective is to become a place where people who are concerned about the environment, about the dignity of the lives of the animals they eat and about their own health, can buy a lot of different products of the highest quality in a company with a responsible philosophy. Their food does not have any chemical ingredient in any of the production phases and therefore is more tasty and respects the environment.
Veritas offers ecological products of recognized international brands and also its own products which are always very controlled to offer a high quality and which gives the opportunity to the company to be more competitive with prices. In the supermarkets we can find common products such as fruit, vegetables, meat of animals without extra hormons, milk, cheese, rice... and more special products such as tofu and vegetable icecream.
For sure the prices will be higher than in normal supermarkets but the higher quality of the products deserves it. Now Veritas only exists in Barcelona but it is starting to expand to all the Spanish territory.

The ethical challenges this company is addressing.

Ecological food is obtained without the use of fertilizers, pesticides or growth hormones with the objective of preserving the environment, maintaining or increasing soil fertility and providing food with all its natural properties using different methods such as manure and crop rotation.
There are some requirements for becoming an organic farmer such as using the land that has rested at least five years of conventional farming, (a period that allows the elimination of chemical waste), carrying out planting and harvesting in natural season of the product, so that crops continue its natural rhythm, avoiding the use of greenhouses, controlling pests through the rotation of fields, animals or organic products and using organic fertilizers.
As for the meat that Veritas sells, the animals are raised outdoors and are fed on breast milk up to eight months. Then, they continue their diet with natural products such as corn and soybeans. It is important to mention that they do not use additives or stimulants of any kind to accelerate growth and fattening and that the slaughter of animals is performed in an respectful and individual way, not in masses, to reduce the toxins that are lodged in the meat when the animal is in stress situations.
The most important ethical challenge that Veritas has to confront is the fact that it is a chain of distribution of these products (meat and vegetables) and should therefore ensure that they follow the ethics of eco-business suppliers

What makes you believe this company is really ethical and why you trust it.

The rule of the generic term "organic" is severe and quite controlled. All organic products must carry a numbered label and a specific symbol, the name and the code of the authority, and the words "organic" in order to give the card to consumers that a product has been subjected to checks and inspections. In this way the law is the credential that Veritas complies with its code of ethics.

The possible challenges facing the company in the future and how you think this company may improve

We believe that one of the challenges the company faces is to establish a business development to continue its ethical principles. We believe that the conflict will have to face high prices and the possible loss of quality subject to the evolution of business (new stores, new countries).
As we know the products are more expensive than general because they need more time to grow and are tied to high rates. But we must not lose sight of the fact that Veritas is a company focused on a sector that is willing to spend a bit more money in order to consume a healthier product. Hence we assume that prices will remain high but we believe that it is the consumer´s mentality that has to be changed: we are what we eat, so it’s worth eating healthy and well.
Concerning the sustained growth, Veritas will be able to settle in places where you can find suppliers that meet their needs and the company will also have to adapt to each country: culinary culture, law and organic produce target among others.

Bibliography

http://www.ecoveritas.es
http://www.quefranquicia.com/noticias_detalle.cfm?cd_noticia=271
http://megustacuidarme.es/blog/2007/07/12/veritas-supermercados-para-comer-de-verdad/
http://www.productosecologicossinintermediarios.es/Legislacion.htm
http://ferransala.com/?p=2304

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1 Discussion / 1 Message

  • Ecoveritas S.A. 15 June 2015 at 12:04 , by Elçin Kaya

    I have been living in Barcelona since September 2014. In my country, Turkey, we are used to buy foods from local producers which we believe they do not use a lot of fertilizers or chemicals. However, at the same time my consumption from supermarkets was quite high. In Barcelona I started to do my grocery from Veritas and I had change to examine the quality of the food and difference of taste between Veritas products and supermarket products. At the end Veritas is more preferable than other supermarkets.
    In Veritas, you see where your food is coming from and also you learn more about consuming more sustainable more ecological food.
    One of the challenges of Veritas is price competitiveness. It is more expensive compared to normal supermarket. However, since the prices are higher than normal it makes consumer to think, how much do I actually need to buy. So, high prices have good effect at the end, it reduces the waste of food.

Location: Barcelona (Spain)

Sector: ecological supermarket and other grocery stores

Official website: http://www.ecoveritas.es

Key figures:

Veritas is the first supermarket chain to sell ecological food in Spain. It started in June 2002. Today the company owns 10 supermarkets and three restaurants in Barcelona and its surroundings and has 150 employees. The company had 10 million in revenues in 2007 and is aiming to increase this number in the following years. Veritas has a variety of 4,000 products and a 40,000 client list.

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