<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jul/27/farmers-pick-fruit-subscription-boxes-imperfect>
"Awkward potatoes, conjoined carrots, bulging strawberries and hail-blemished
oranges have long had an image problem.
Unloved by food retailers, they are among the millions of tonnes of food wasted
in Australia each year.
The ugly – or imperfect – food movement is, however, gathering momentum, as
entrepreneurs seek to change our perceptions. In a period marked by steep
increases in food prices, they might also save shoppers more than a few dollars
in the process.
Josh Ball, co-founder of imperfect box delivery company Farmers Pick, says
citrus is among the most discarded produce, with up to 50% rejected from food
retailers and left on farms to rot.
He says there was hail in parts of the Riverina in New South Wales, a major
citrus area, during a recent growing season, leaving small marks on some fruit
smaller than a five-cent coin.
This would typically be rejected by major retailers, but is increasingly being
added to cut-price imperfect fruit and vegetable subscription boxes, including
those delivered by Farmers Pick.
“Just look at the way that citrus is packaged by nature to just be the perfect
snack on the go; you peel the skin off and the fruit is juicy and ready to
eat,” says Ball.
“The impact of the cosmetic appearance on the actual fruit was next to zero.
It’s not even ugly.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
