SIMER territory, Vienne, France

What was done

The SIMER (an inter-departmental waste authority in the Vienne area, France) ran a two-part hen operation in 2014–2015 under its ADEME-backed waste-prevention programme, branded "R'œuf'cyclage." The context: residual household waste on its territory was measured at 42% organic matter (29% peelings + 13% food waste), so organic diversion had high headroom.

The operation combined a small monitored pilot with a mass distribution:

• A 10-household "test coop" pilot, run as the main task of a 3-month intern, weighing diverted waste.
• A public distribution: 922 households applied; ~800 hens were distributed across two waves (315 on 28 November 2014, ~600 on 28 March 2015), accompanied by a build-your-own-coop-from-reclaimed-materials workshop.

Results

• The 10 monitored households diverted an average of ~33 kg per person per year from landfill.
• 922 applications against ~800 hens distributed — demand outran supply, a consistent pattern across French programmes.
• The authority's own communication cites a household-level figure of up to 100 kg of organic waste eaten per year.

What a replicating commune should know

• Measure your own waste composition first. SIMER's 42%-organic residual-bin figure is what justified the operation; a local characterisation study turns "nice idea" into a defensible business case.
• Pair a measurement pilot with the mass distribution. Running 10 monitored households alongside the public rollout produced credible per-person data (~33 kg/person/year) at the cost of one intern.
• The coop is a barrier; address it directly. SIMER ran a workshop teaching households to build a coop from reclaimed materials, lowering the cost hurdle to participation.
• Expect to be oversubscribed and plan waves. 922 applications were handled with two distribution dates rather than one.