ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

Home → Environment → Eco tips

Give ugly veggies and fruits a second chance – they’re just as tasty

According to the United Nations, 20 to 40 percent of fresh food is thrown away by farmers because they don't look as appetizing as they should to sell. Besides looking a bit crooked, twisted or shrugged, these fruits and vegetables are perfectly edible and taste no different than the perfectly shaped ones you're always on the lookout for in the supermarket.

Tibi PuiubyTibi Puiu
January 12, 2016
in Eco tips, Videos
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSubmit to Reddit

ugly-carrot1

According to the United Nations, 20 to 40 percent of fresh food is thrown away by farmers because they don’t look as appetizing as they should to sell. Besides looking a bit crooked, twisted or shrugged, these fruits and vegetables are perfectly edible and taste no different than the perfectly shaped ones you’re always on the lookout for in the supermarket.

eggplant

Acknowledging this dreadful waste, the European Union has started a campaign to raise awareness and convince consumers eating unaesthetic veggies is perfectly fine. To this aim, they’ve teamed up with French retailer Intermarche for a pilot campaign called the “Inglorious Vegetables and Fruits”. Working together with farmers and retail stores, ugly vegetables and fruits were sold with a 30% discount, much to the delight of customers who flocked to the stands, proving they need not much convincing. Everybody seems to be happy: customers get tasty fresh food at a hefty discount, farmers earn more by selling products which would have otherwise been discarded, and retailers can benefit from a greater sales volume. The fresh food pie just got bigger!

grotesque-apple

The little town of Provins, outside Paris, where the first such Intermache experiment was made is not alone. In Portugal,  a food cooperative called Fruta Feia (Ugly Fruit) buys produce too gnarly for supermarkets and sells it to customers, reports the New York Times. A similar initiative is preparing to run in the United Kingdom.

RelatedPosts

EU pushes for circular economy to have longer-lasting products
Americans aren’t only wasting the most food — they’re also throwing out the best bits
3D printing may be worse for your lungs than assumed
What counts as fruits and veggies for the “five a day”? This study clears things out
Tags: fruitsvegetableswaste

ShareTweetShare
Tibi Puiu

Tibi Puiu

Tibi is a science journalist and co-founder of ZME Science. He writes mainly about emerging tech, physics, climate, and space. In his spare time, Tibi likes to make weird music on his computer and groom felines. He has a B.Sc in mechanical engineering and an M.Sc in renewable energy systems.

Related Posts

Health

Scientists uncover how your brain flushes out waste during sleep

byTibi Puiu
6 months ago
News

We’re told to ‘eat a rainbow’ of fruit and vegetables. Here’s what each colour does in our body

byEvangeline Mantzioris
1 year ago
Food and Nutrition

Carrots were originally purple, not orange. Here’s what happened

byMihai Andrei
2 years ago
Green Living

Why is recycling so important? The dirty truth behind our trash

byFermin Koop
2 years ago

Recent news

China Resurrected an Abandoned Soviet ‘Sea Monster’ That’s Part Airplane, Part Hovercraft

June 30, 2025
great white shark

This Shark Expert Has Spent Decades Studying Attacks and Says We’ve Been Afraid for the Wrong Reasons

June 30, 2025

A Rocket Carried Cannabis Seeds and 166 Human Remains into Space But Their Capsule Never Made It Back

June 30, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • How we review products
  • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Science News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Space
  • Future
  • Features
    • Natural Sciences
    • Physics
      • Matter and Energy
      • Quantum Mechanics
      • Thermodynamics
    • Chemistry
      • Periodic Table
      • Applied Chemistry
      • Materials
      • Physical Chemistry
    • Biology
      • Anatomy
      • Biochemistry
      • Ecology
      • Genetics
      • Microbiology
      • Plants and Fungi
    • Geology and Paleontology
      • Planet Earth
      • Earth Dynamics
      • Rocks and Minerals
      • Volcanoes
      • Dinosaurs
      • Fossils
    • Animals
      • Mammals
      • Birds
      • Fish
      • Amphibians
      • Reptiles
      • Invertebrates
      • Pets
      • Conservation
      • Animal facts
    • Climate and Weather
      • Climate change
      • Weather and atmosphere
    • Health
      • Drugs
      • Diseases and Conditions
      • Human Body
      • Mind and Brain
      • Food and Nutrition
      • Wellness
    • History and Humanities
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • History
      • Economics
      • People
      • Sociology
    • Space & Astronomy
      • The Solar System
      • Sun
      • The Moon
      • Planets
      • Asteroids, meteors & comets
      • Astronomy
      • Astrophysics
      • Cosmology
      • Exoplanets & Alien Life
      • Spaceflight and Exploration
    • Technology
      • Computer Science & IT
      • Engineering
      • Inventions
      • Sustainability
      • Renewable Energy
      • Green Living
    • Culture
    • Resources
  • Videos
  • Reviews
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Editorial policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.