Spanish retailer Eroski has sold more than 786 tonnes of imperfect fruits and vegetables in its campaign to promote the consumption of 'ugly' produce, the company announced.
Ugly produce are items which don't fulfil appearance standards, but that have the same taste and nutritional elements as their 'perfect' cousins.
The campaign, rolled out during November in Eroski stores, aimed to raise awareness about food waste and responsible consumption. Oranges, potatoes, mandarines and courgettes were the most popular items sold.
"We are very satisfied with the result of the campaign and it has inspired us to repeat it in the future", said Alejandro Martínez Berriochoa, director of social responsibility.
"Between 20 and 40% of the fruits and vegetables produced in Europe are disposed of before they reach the stores because they are imperfect," he added.
Thirteen varieties of fruits and vegetables that didn't meet appearance standards due to their looks or size were offered to customers with discounts of up to 50%.
The company said that the awareness campaign also went very well online, generating over one million impressions and almost 150,000 engagements.
Eroski has pledged that no product apt for human consumption will be thrown out in its stores, donating it instead to charitable organisations in the surrounding area through the 'Zero Waste' programme.
It isn't alone in its campaign - French retailer Carrefour Group announced in October that it intends to reduce its food wastage by 50%, by the end of 2025. Tesco has recently launched a crowdfunding platform for food waste-fighting initiatives.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
