"In 2021, 3.8 tonnes of objects were thus diverted from landfill, and in 2022 we are at 4.2 tonnes", welcomes AFP Serge Bereni, initiator of this free store backed by the waste disposal center of the village of 2,200 inhabitants.

For visitors, it is also a way to circumvent inflation.

"I found a lamp and this beautiful colored soup tureen for the Christmas decorations", rejoices Catherine Piombini, a 65-year-old retired civil servant who wanders through this 100 square meter hangar fitted out thanks to 80,000 euros in public aid.

"The last time, I brought books, tissues and a coffee maker. And this summer, for my grandson who came on vacation, I took Playmobil, which I brought back when he left", explains to AFP this regular of the place.

While Corsica has been struggling for twenty years to manage its waste, in the absence of an incinerator and with only two landfill centers, this clever and eco-friendly alternative to landfill was created on the model of the "inverted supermarket " de Vayres initiated in 2017 in Gironde by the joint waste collection and recovery union of Libournais.

Difficult month-ends

"Libourne is the first in France, we are the second, the first in Corsica, but we would like it to be everywhere", enthuses Mr. Bereni.

"It was no longer possible to see valuable things thrown away, with the times we live in, the perpetual increases", adds this territorial agent in charge of the environment on the community of municipalities of Costa Verde.

A man holds skis at the "reverse supermarket" in Cervione, a free store in Haute-Corse, on December 16, 2022 © Pascal POCHARD-CASABIANCA / AFP/Archives

The poorest region in metropolitan France, Corsica is "more vulnerable to current inflation", Insee pointed out in December 2022, pointing to a greater presence on the island of rural inhabitants, low-income households, single-parent families and elderly people, all more affected by rising energy and food prices.

This cave of Ali Baba, open Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning, is run by Sylvie Perolari, a 62-year-old volunteer who lists the donations of objects organized via the store: 2 kg of toys to the Secours populaire, 5.6 kg of DVDs at the Tattone hospital, 12 kg of toys at the village crèche, 20 kg of crockery and books at the Red Cross.

"For me, the end of the month is also very difficult, but this place occupies my mind. I love the storage, the harmony", explains the one who lives sparingly on her disabled adult allowance.

Evelyne Tarabon, manager of a tourist accommodation site located in the town, has found her happiness: "cups for breakfast".

"I am always in the recovery, the second hand, in a circular and eco-responsible economy", she explains: "with this store, people realize that sustainable, eco-responsible, it is not just a word ".

The manager of the "reverse supermarket" in Cervione, a free store in Haute-Corse, chats with a customer, December 16, 2022 © Pascal POCHARD-CASABIANCA / AFP/Archives

As for Patrick Hoor, a 68-year-old journalist specializing in ecology and osteopath, he brought some books and left with two pairs of skis: "My wife wanted to go back to skiing. So there you go!"

We need this "awareness", he believes: "Otherwise nature will impose it on us".

© 2022 AFP