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Our History

For nearly 150 years, five generations have succeeded one another at the head of the family business, making CEPASCO and its brands a key player in the world of spices.

Today, quality products and unrivaled expertise are the hallmarks of a company that is now international in scope.

In 1876, Antoine ESPIG, of Spanish origin, moved to Alger to import and market saffron grown in Spain.

In 1899, Frédéric took over from his father and developed a new blend called Spigol®, a combination of saffron and noble spices to enhance the flavor and color of paella.

Thanks to “Spigol®“, the company enjoyed immediate and dazzling success, soon extending beyond Algeria’s borders.

The ESPIG family moves to Marseille for its port opening. A new company is created: CEPASCO (Centrale des Épices Assaisonnements et Condiments), marketing a wide range of spices and blends from diverse cultures and origins from all over the world.

OUR STRENGTHS

Every day, CEPASCO and its staff are committed to providing consumers with the very best products, carefully selected and controlled. Around 200 spices and herbs from all over the world are received, processed and packaged. This constant attention is formalized in a Quality approach that involves the entire CEPASCO team.

LABEL ROUGE

Harvested in Provence, our Herbes de Provence are Label Rouge certified, a French guarantee of superior quality. Through rigorous monitoring, Label Rouge guarantees flavors that exceed market standards. The recipe rigorously follows the Label Rouge specifications ; it has been designed to obtain a perfect aromatic balance from 4 plants (Savory, Oregano, Rosemary and Thyme).

PROTECTED GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION

This label guarantees that our Thyme comes from a plant grown and processed in Provence, within the area covered by the PGI specifications. Thyme de Provence, which grows spontaneously in the garrigue, is produced by farmers in the PACA and Drôme Provençale regions. Thanks to ancestral know-how in sorting and drying, and in compliance with the IGP Thym de Provence specifications, only the noble parts of the plant have been used to bring out the best : the leaves.

AUTHENTIC PROVENCE

Our Authentic Provence-certified herbs guarantee the authenticity of our products’ origins in Provence. Our herbs are grown and harvested by our farmers in Provence, then packaged in our workshops in Gémenos, Provence. Thanks to this certification, it is important for us to participate in local sustainable development by reducing our carbon footprint. We value the products of our local farmers in Provence to offer you Provencal products with the utmost transparency and traceability.

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Our values rooted in a true story! CEPASCO is committed to a responsible approach to sustainable development. Demanding standards, transparency, ethical behavior, recognition and respect are the key words of our company. Behind each product are committed, passionate men and women. In this context, and via a formal CSR approach, CEPASCO and all its employees have sought to set up a framework in which professional balance and economic constraints coexist, in order to build together a better way of life within the company. To this end, empowerment and involvement in the life of the company, communication, mutual respect, trust and transparency are the essential values of collaboration in our company.

M/F PROFESSIONAL EQUALITY INDEX

Our professional equality index in 2024 is 95% for calculable indicators. For all sub-categories, our gap in individual increases is 35/35. Our score for employees receiving an increase on return from maternity leave is not calculable, as we had no maternity leave in 2023. Regarding the number of employees of the under-represented gender in the top 10, our score is 10/10. Finally, our pay gap is 36/40.

SUPPLIERS

Working closely together, CEPASCO’s Quality and Purchasing teams select the best products and suppliers through a rigorous assessment of product quality, careful implementation and monitoring of specifications, and regular evaluation of selected suppliers, notably through audits carried out directly at our suppliers’ sites worldwide.

This quality approach has also led to the establishment of long-standing partnerships between CEPASCO and some suppliers.

CONTROLS

To ensure constant quality of its products, CEPASCO analyzes all delivered products and entrusts independent laboratories with the conduct of various analyzes which validate the quality and safety of the products received, such as the absence of allergens and GMOs and the compliance with the presence of pesticide residues.

A control plan is established annually and is improved based on scientific and health advances in order to guarantee consumers the marketing of a healthy and safe product. Controls take place throughout the production chain until sending to customers.

PRODUCTION & TRACEABILITY

CEPASCO uses mainly whole spices, the rawest possible with little processing between the field and our factory. These materials are then worked in our workshops, which allows us to control the transformation chain.

Depending on their destination, after cleaning, herbs, spices and peppers can be crushed, pulverized or mixed before being packaged in their packaging.

In addition, all CEPASCO products are fully traced and tracked from the batches shipped by our suppliers to the package purchased by our consumers. This traceability is essential to guarantee consumer safety.

ECO-FRIENDLY

Alongside our commitment to our consumers, CEPASCO is also committed to a global eco-responsible approach.

Our first concern is to use only the minimum amount of raw materials and packaging : we limit our waste as much as possible to ensure that we only buy and use the quantity of products we need and thus limit our environmental impact.

Our second concern is to help manage the impact of our finished products: our packaging can be selectively sorted and we call on all our customers to do something for the environment by sorting recyclable items!

– Sachets range Plastic bag to recycle.

– 500 ml Pots range: Plastic bottle and cap to be recycled.

– Tubos range : Plastic bottle and its cap to recycle.

For more details, do not hesitate to refer directly to our spice packaging. Find more information on sorting instructions depending on your place of residence on www.quefairedemesdechets.fr