Paris (AFP)

"In Paul Bocuse's country, we can do something other than deliver junk food in poor social conditions".

The catering offer to be delivered, which has been growing rapidly since the pandemic, must be "of quality: ethical, responsible and sustainable", believe many chefs.

Once the mushrooms are stuffed with snail butter in the oven, chef Franck Baranger browns plump duck breasts, intended for some 140 menus - 3 courses for 25 euros - which will be taken away or delivered to the customers of his Belle Maison bistro. , on this cold December day.

"Take-out is easy, but for delivery we needed a trusted partner: if the dish that leaves us falls on the ground, then is picked up and served, the customer will say to himself that it is the fault of the restaurant! ", underlines Mr. Baranger.

"It is important that our dishes arrive perfectly prepared, easy to reheat in the oven, in a beautiful origami-shaped packaging, ecological, made in France ... and delivered by delivery people employed in CDI by a normal company, who contribute to Social Security and can find accommodation, ”he said.

With a hundred catering players, Mr. Baranger signed a column at the end of November in the Journal du Dimanche advocating an "ethical delivery" and calling on "the political authorities to regulate platforms" with "deleterious for all" activity. .

Without naming the American giants Uber Eats and Deliveroo, often pinned down for the precariousness and the low remuneration of their self-employed delivery men, they point to an "unfair competition" from actors who "take exorbitant commissions" while "exploiting precarious delivery men. ".

- "Right price" -

The consumer must understand that a "dish delivered in 20 minutes, for a delivery cost of 2.50 euros, is the promise of an underpaid delivery man, without social protection, who runs empty and without income when 'he does not run,' said the tribune.

For Mr. Baranger, "by dragging prices down, everyone lives badly. It's a lifestyle choice: we want to ensure quality and take care of our partners: suppliers, breeders, employees, delivery people ".

This respect has a price: a delivery of 10 euros in the intramural capital - 20 to 30 euros in the outskirts -, provided by the start-up Tiptoque.

Created in 2015 to deliver meal trays in companies, it provides restaurants in Paris and Lyon with a turnkey reservation platform and employs salaried delivery companies such as Top Chrono or Welbex.

"You have to educate the client about his social and societal responsibility, to pay the right price," says Thomas Bouvier, its co-founder.

"In Paul Bocuse's country, we can do something other than deliver junk food in poor social conditions", adds his partner Edwy Rousseau.

"When I deliver an 8 o'clock pig or a royal hare, I'm happy."

Partner of the Michelin guide, Tiptoque brings together around fifty chefs including Eric Frechon, Yannick Alléno, Kelly Rangama and Beatriz Gonzalez, with the credo of "respecting the product and the human, from farm to fork" and to apply commissions reasonable.

And deliver, with refrigerated vans, "in irreproachable hygienic conditions", underlines restaurateur Stéphane Manigold, at the head of the Eclore group, "while respecting the cold chain".

At the Rôtisserie d'Argent, chef Sébastien Devos says he's thinking about "hiring someone to master everything from A to Z: last mile logistics are very important".

© 2020 AFP