Origens a Granel: The “bulk” story of Marta and Ângela

Marta Araújo and Ângela Pinto are friends and partners of Origens a Granel,…

… and their professional life was supposed to be on psychology and social work but, when they felt that their community in Leiria needed a bulk store, they gave rise to Origens a Granel. According to Marta, the idea “initially came as a joke (“what if we opened a bulk store?”) But then it became serious and gained “legs to walk and wings to fly!”

Origens a Granel,…

… allows the access of general public, but mainly the community from Leiria, to bulk food and non-food products (eg. detergents). They intend to “raise awareness of responsible and conscious consumption, as well as the importance of a balanced diet.” Through Origens a Granel and also at a personal level, they intend to fight food waste but also the waste of resources necessary for the survival of all of us on this planet.

Origens a Granel offers to its customers…

… bulk food products such as spices, dried and dehydrated fruits, teas, aromatic herbs, cookies, granola, cereals, legumes, pasta, rice, sugars, etc. It offers bulk hygiene and cleaning products such as solid shampoos, toothpastes, bamboo toothbrushes, laundry, household and dishes detergents, as well as other products such as stainless steel and bamboo straws, cloth, etc.

Origens a Granel team consists of…

… Marta Araújo, who has a degree in Psychology and is concerned with sustainability and waste and by Ângela Pinto, graduated in Social Work, with a background in Macrobiotic cuisine and a great concern about eating healthy.

Marta and Ângela believe that they act in a sustainable way, because…

… buying in bulk contributes to less food waste, as it promotes “healthier and more responsible consumption by the customer”. In bulk, the customer can use their containers to place food and manage their doses.

To reduce its ecological footprint, Origens a Granel tries to use as much as possible products of national origin.

One of Origins a Granel greatest challenges,…

… is dealing with the packaging where the products are packed. These packages are made of paper or cardboard and other plastic packages, to maintain food conservation. The alternative they use to treat this type of waste are reusing or recycling these packages. To reduce the use of single-use packaging, Marta and Ângela are negotiating with some suppliers to have a packaging exchange approach between them, that is, to set up a “come and go” system.

The national market, according to Marta,…

… “is still taking its first steps in the area of sustainability” and there is a need to publicize the issue in communities in order to deliver a change in mentalities, because although there is a greater concern for the topic, there is still a lot of work to do, so that sustainability has more impact on our lives.

There is still the idea that recycling is the “salvation” for the treatment of certain waste, which is not true, but even if it was, the problem would not be solved, as there are still many people and companies that do not know how to recycle and they are not used to doing so.

If communities adopt a different lifestyle, through the acquisition of behaviors such as…

… consumption of bulk, local, seasonal, fresh and unprocessed products will help producers in their communities and reduce their ecological footprint. In addition, by reducing the demand for unhealthy products with a large ecological footprint, there will be a reduction in their offer and companies will have to adapt to what the consumer wants.

“The simple fact that we choose what we buy is a vote in itself".

Get to know more Origens a Granel in:

Website: origensagranel.pt

Facebook: @origensagranel.leiria

Instagram: @origensagranel.leiria