A century of passion for Les Jardins du Roussillon celebrated with local partners.

Jardins du Roussillon held its first centenary event with all its business partners on the eve of the MEDFEL trade show on April 23 in Perpignan. On December 6 a second celebration took place at the Théâtre de Thuir and Caves de Byrrh, aimed at its local partners, producers, employees and friends. " All of you have contributed to the success of the company and carried a piece of its history, thank you and this celebration is your birthday " declared its president Julien Battle.

Expanding the production tool thanks to 100% consumer satisfaction

In 2024, Jardins du Roussillon proudly marks 100 years of flourishing history in the production and shipping of conventional and organic fresh fruit and vegetables. Today, the family business offers nearly 10,000 tonnes of cucumbers from 48ha of greenhouses, available from February to October; 5,500 tonnes or 11 million pieces of lettuce, produced in 26ha of greenhouses ; 4,000 tons of apricots from 330ha of orchards, 5,000 tons of peaches and nectarines, 1,500 tons of celery, 250 tons of black figs of the Bourjassote variety (30ha), 100 tons of persimmons of the Fuyu type (5ha), 800 tons of pears  of the Harrow Sweet, Harrow Delicious, Eliot and Eden varieties (50ha). " We continue to grow and offer unique specialties, with optimum freshness and quality, with the primary objective of 100% consumer satisfaction; this helps us maintaining and developing our production activity " declares Julien Battle. The diversified offer in baby salad specialties, reds, multi-leaves and chicory are a good example of taste-based segmentation in the leafly category.

4 generations dedicated to investing in the future...

" Our commitment to innovation, sustainability and quality has been the driving force behind our success over the decades. Thank you to our valued customers, partners and collaborators who have helped make Jardins du Roussillon a benchmark in the field. ". Indeed, the company has become one of France's top 50 fruit and vegetable shippers. Recent investments in a second 5,000m2 shipping station for organic produce in 2023 and a new 10,000m2 photovoltaic farm are the latest commitments of the family business towards greater ecology and competitiveness. The company is now self-sufficient in 40% of its electricity needs. In 2020, the main warehouse, called " Camelas 1 " near Thuir, was extended to 10,000m2 and equipped with 2 new packaging lines for all Jardins du Roussillon's traditional products which are stone fruits and vegetables. The second warehouse commissioned for organic produce is also dedicated to new ranges such as white nectarines, figs and persimmons.

Meeting today's challenges : developing economically sustainable production tools

Julien Battle points out that the French fruit and vegetable sector has been reduced by a factor of 2.5 in 40 years, while at the same time French industrial activity has collapsed. "Preserving and developing our production tools is our main challenge, as 1 production job also generates 3 service jobs" reminds Julien. The company's main objective is to preserve its production tools so that farmers can remain competitive and make a living from their activity. "We invest in solar energy above all to reduce our costs, not just for the environment," says Julien. He points out that the cost of energy has multiplied by 2 in 3 years. The Batlle family is currently working on the 2025-2030 business project to give visibility to its core businesses, which are the production, packaging and marketing of fresh fruit and vegetables. " We also take into account the agri-environmental challenges in order to fully preserve the added value of our activity in our local territory, with good management of natural resources such as water " concludes Julien.

A business that lasts

The origins of the Ille Roussillon group date back to 1924 with Jacques Bes, who started a salad shipping business in Thuir. Jean-Pierre and Hélène Ille grew the family business by developing fruit and vegetable packaging and storage at the Thuir site. In 1997, Pierre Batlle initiated the development of the farms. The aim was to strengthen the group's fruit and vegetable production. In 2006, brothers Julien and Pierre Batlle took over the company, continuing the family tradition. They gave new impetus to the company in terms of investment in production and manufacturing. Julien Batlle gave the company a strong commercial impetus, developing new products (organic, flat nectarines, pears, etc.) and signing new agreements, in particular with the Plaine du Roussillon cooperative. Today, the company packs almost 20,000 tonnes of products, 97% of which come from the Roussillon region, and sells almost 30,000 tonnes with sales of €60 million.

For more information, please write here