History
ARECO: a French Food Tech
The expert and World Leader in tailor-made and smart solutions to better valorise and manage fresh products departments while reducing food waste
since
The pioneer in nebulisation solutions
(patented in 1994)
technicians
specialised
active customers
Presence in France, Europe, North America, Oceania, with references in more than 20 countries
awards
for the innovative company or CSR
since
Committed to a CSR approach
people
constitute the research and development team
since
Development of eco-designed machines
studies
on the conservation of fresh products
SME
Accelerator
Company selected for the SME Accelerator program organised by BPI France
1998: ARECO revolutionizes the fresh products market with nebulisation
Located in Grasse, in the Maritime Alps, ARECO is a French company created in 1998 to exploit nebulisation, a technology developed by a Toyota Group research centre: IMRA Europe SAS. Originally this technology was intended to cool down the vehicle interior.
This technology consists in fragmenting liquids (water, perfume or biocides) via a piezoelectric system to obtain an extremely fine water fog: 95% of the drops created have a diameter smaller than 5 microns (100 times smaller than the size of a hair). This technological innovation is much more efficient (homogeneous and temperature maintenance) than traditional humidification systems.
Nebulisation was first deployed in the food industry in order to control humidity in wine cellars and barrel cellars, thus ensuring the proper conservation of the wine and in cheese maturing cellars.
Nebulisation developed in supermarkets and local food stores in the 2000s....
In 2000, everything changed thanks to a meeting with an actor – now an essential part of the distribution industry – dedicated to fresh products: Grand Frais, Prosol Group.
Nebulisation is used in supermarkets and multi-specialists to better conserve raw fruits and vegetables in the fresh departments. The objective is to extend the shelf life of these extremely perishable foods in terms of appearance, texture, flavours and organoleptic properties. The results are even more spectacular in terms of humidity control, homogeneity, breakage reduction and marketing impact.
The application was then extended to seafood counters in 2005, followed by butcher/delicatessen/catering and cheese departments in 2008.
ARECO is the first French company to have used nebulisation to conserve, hydrate, enhance and maintain the freshness of products on the fresh departments (fruit and vegetables, seafood, meat and cheese) by diffusing an extremely fine water fog into the air, without any water spraying that could alter or wet the food.
... then in industrial sectors
The mastery of nebulisation technology then encouraged the company to extend its fields of application to many industrial sectors: the pharmaceutical, plastics, textile, biscuits, automotive industries, now marketed under the LIDIT brand.
In 2004, ARECO expanded beyond the French borders
The proper conservation and the development of sales of fresh products in stores are worldwide issues.
Known for the reliability and efficiency of its fresh products conservation solutions and for the global management of its equipment, ARECO started expanding on all continents.
After a development in several European countries (Germany in 2006, Belgium in 2008, Portugal and Spain in 2010, Italy in 2015…), subsidiaries were created on other continents.
In 2016, the ARECO NORTH AMERICA subsidiary was created in the United States to distribute ARECO products in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
2018 is the year in which the ARECO Pacific subsidiary was created to export ARECO solutions to Australia and New Zealand.
The ARECO Deutschland GmbH subsidiary was created in 2020 to distribute ARECO products in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
In 2011, the company is moving towards digital technology
In 2011, ARECO launched the development of several applications (ADDACHEF and SIMULFEL) to help consumers cook fresh products and reduce the consumption of processed industrial products, and to help stores develop the sale of fresh products, while reducing product breakage and food waste.
With the emergence of a new 3.0 digital consumption model, the company is capitalizing on its experience in managing innovative projects to pave the way for connected applications at the point of sale. In the medium term, the aim is to develop a whole series of connected devices enabling retailers, large and medium-sized stores, to boost their sales areas.
ARECO, a foodtech company committed in the food transition
Taste, health and the quest for meaning are now more than ever at the heart of consumers concerns.
The questioning of our food models has gained momentum in the French public sphere. It has become urgent to limit the negative impacts of our eating habits and to move towards more virtuous systems.
ARECO is answering that need by developing new conservation solutions that help improve storage and guarantee the quality and freshness of fresh products in food stores.
We want to help democratize the consumption of fresh products to the greatest number, especially those who consume little today, while reducing food waste.
The networks
The company is part of several networks. It has been a member of BPI Excellence since 2012, which supports companies in their growth.
It is also part of the Entreprendre network, a French entrepreneurial network, the French Tech…
In 2017, ARECO was one of the winners of the Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur Accelerator Program.
In line with the momentum initiated by this program, in 2019, ARECO is participating in the SME Accelerator program organised by BPI France. The company encourages its employees to get involved in these actions as well.
