Clef des champs holds the key to herbal health products

Clef des Champs master herbalist Marie Provost and her team have great ideals. And they are not ones to put limitations on themselves. Living proof of this is the magnificent new head office they built to bring all company activities under one roof. Covering an area of 650 square meters (7,000 square feet), the new building promises to secure a bright future for the herbal products manufacturer.

Located in Val-David in the Laurentians, the SME specializes in the manufacture of products such as ointments, extracts and glycerines made from the organic plants it grows in its own gardens. It also offers teas and quality culinary herbs and spices.

Centralizing all of Clef des Champs’ activities will of course improve its productivity. Until fall 2010, the herb company operated out of four separate establishments. Marie Provost does nothing by halves: adhering to strict environmental principles, she made the change. In meeting the Canadian LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards for sustainable development, the new head office is at the forefront of green building.

The key to success

Marie Provost champions the same values as she did when she founded her company in 1978. Her convictions are central to her management philosophy. Respect for people and for the environment, together with corporate social responsibility still guide her actions today as they did back then. The Clef des Champs team embodies the basic tenets of sustainable development in everything they do, day to day, from simple selective collection through to composting and improving the packaging.

 

Green roof

To emphasize the company’s agricultural nature and reduce the building’s footprint, the entire structure is covered with a 650-square metre green roof, which will afford more growing space for medicinal herbs. “This building is designed to take maximum advantage of the sunlight and heat for passive solar energy, re-uses grey water for the plant wall and uses natural ventilation for passive air conditioning,” explained Marie Provost.

The facilities also use geothermal radiant heating and less water than traditional facilities. The structure and cladding are locally harvested wood, the insulation value is very high and all the materials used are non-toxic.

“We were careful to work in ways that would cause minimal environmental disruption before, during and after construction. Felled trees were recovered, and we installed infiltration ponds planted with aquatic species to absorb the runoff water,” added Marie Provost.

Bringing the company’s various activities under one roof necessitated an investment of $2 million. In addition to guiding the Clef des Champs team, Canada Economic Development is proud to have provided funding that helped bring this ambitious project to fruition.

But this is just the beginning. Masterfully combining efficiency and greening, the enterprise holds the keys to its future. Unique in North America for its carved terrace gardens, Clef des Champs has its ears to the ground for new discoveries and practices which are sure to lead to even bigger and better things.