la ruche qui dit oui / the food assembly/2011-2012. PARIS
Reconnecting Communities With Food
Conducted extensive research on the creation of a service connecting consumers to farmers, what made it stand out and the role of the designer in this process. I also analyzed the increasing use of design to develop community-based solutions and positive social impact in the area of collaborative services. John Thackara mentored me in this research. Published in the Design Management Review.
For my Masters thesis in 2011, I worked together with Guilhém Chéron, the founder and designer of La Ruche Qui Dit Oui (LRQDO)/The Food Assembly, in Paris. LRQDO connects people directly to local food producers through a fair and transparent retail model. Hosts open “hives” within their neighbourhood (members and farmers) and organize a weekly online shop and a physical market pick-up. Farmers sell directly through this shop setting their own prices. Thus, there is no middleman: members pay the farmers directly, allowing them to earn 80% for their hard work in comparison to 15-25% through supermarkets. Service fees are fixed and well-balanced between the Host and LRQDO.
Passionate about food systems, collaborative services and sustainability the opportunity to explore Guilhém’s design process, in the creation of this service set the ideal frame of research. “I didn’t invent anything new" Guillem told me, "I just merged different ideas into a service that worked better for the people involved. We've designed a tool that can make the distribution and exchange process ten times faster, and easier, and be more appealing, than existing systems. An important aspect has been to create a social enterprise model empowering hosts rather than just a voluntary organisation”.
I was incredibly fortunate to have John Thackara as my mentor for this research. He guided me through a fascinating and formative exploration of food systems, urban farmers, the sharing economy and the design process and qualities that made LRQDO stand out. La Ruche has now expanded from France to Belgium, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany and Italy and grown from 24 hives in 2011 to over 1100 hives in 2018. My research was published in the Design Management Journal. It is available upon request.
