We all know the saying, "it's what inside that counts."
Asda Stores Limited has taken this to heart and has been putting on for sale ugly looking produce at a reduced cost. These irregularly shaped fruit and vegetables are those that usually don't make it to the shelves simply because of appearance.
The U.K based Walmart subsidiary labelled the wonky range of products, "Beautiful on the Inside". The company started this practice at the start of last year as part of their commitment to combat food waste. In the US, it has been estimated that roughly more than 20 pounds of food per person goes to waste every month.
In a statement made last year by Asda, they said "[w]e have more work to do and we're committed to working with our growers to ensure we utilise more of their crops whether that's in Wonky or in our standard ranges." Furthermore, the company said that by relaxing their standard and by obtaining more of the unappealing produce, they have put more food on their shelves and in turn this helps out the farmers.
They have been selling an initially limited selection of wonky fruits and vegetables. They have since expanded that selection because of its popularity with the consumers. As part of their Beautiful on the Inside range, they have recently started to offer the "Wonky Food Box." The Wonky Food Box contains a seasonal selection of irregularly shaped produce being sold at £3.50, cheaper than the regular shaped fruits and vegetables. They have put 20 such boxes in 128 of their branches to see if they'll become a hit with customers.
Asda's technical produce director expressed excitement over the launch as their initial release of the range was such a hit to customers. He went on further to say, "[H]owever, this range only solves one part of the food waste puzzle. The work we continue to do with our growers to ensure as much of their crop is sold as possible, by flexing specifications, is the golden ticket for farmers."
Should we also adopt this kind of mindset towards "ugly" produce here in the US? Tell us your thoughts!
