EU, Bring back Good Food!
The EU Regulation No 543/2011 sets very strict rules on how 10 fruits and vegetables must look before they can be sold in supermarkets. The 10 produce includes: apples, citrus fruits, kiwis, lettuces, peaches and nectarines, pears, strawberries, sweet peppers, table grapes, tomatoes. These 10 produce make up 75% of the EU fruit and vegetable market.
The rules are known as the Specific Marketing Standards and focus mainly on COLOUR, SHAPE and SIZE of the product. For example, "an apple in Extra Class must be ¾ red if it comes from the color group A variety or ½ mixed red if it comes from the color group B variety. Moreover, the minimum size of an apple shall be 60 mm, if measured by diameter or 90 g, if measured by weight." All good food that doesn't meet these specific standards is labeled as unmarketable in the EU and usually thrown away. Tragically, these 10 produce make up 75% of the EU fruit and vegetable market.
With 79 million EU citizens living under the poverty line it is time to stop sending 90 million tonnes of good food to trash. Changing the rule will not only save good food from going to waste, but help preserve all the natural resources that went into growing it. Our world has more than enough food to feed everyone who is hungry, together we can make sure that more food makes it to our markets and to our tables.
To learn more about the campaign and about Say No To Food Waste, visit: saynotofoodwaste.org/campaigns