Last week veg box pioneers, Riverford Organic Farmers, were offered six tonnes of organic lemons after the two major supermarkets they were destined for deemed them ‘unsuitable to meet retailer specification based on appearance’.
Riverford agreed to buy the lemons to deliver to customers across England alongside their seasonal veg boxes, to reduce the needless waste.
Dale Robinson, Riverford Technical manager, explained: “The lemons are slightly green in areas, due to not enough difference between night and daytime temperatures, and have a few scars from hail damage.
“We’ve had our team of in-house chefs check them out and inside they are beautiful, ripe, aromatic lemons with plenty of juice and flavour.
“This is another example of a crazy food system that has forgotten it’s producing food, not kitchen ornaments,” he continued.
“Our customers love knowing exactly where the food on their plate has come from; we can tell them who grew it, how they grew it, and when it was picked.
“This connection means they enjoy getting unusual shaped veg that has been grown for flavour, not cosmetic perfection, and having the reassurance that our farmers are paid fairly for their produce, even if it is not aesthetically perfect.”
Alan & Vicki Mowat, who deliver veg boxes in the Bath area, said: “Our customers love knowing exactly where the food on their plate has come from; we can tell them who grew it, how they grew it, and when it was picked.
“This connection means they enjoy getting unusual shaped veg that has been grown for flavour, not cosmetic perfection, and having the reassurance that our farmers are paid fairly for their produce, even if it is not aesthetically perfect.”
As farmers themselves, Riverford prioritise flavour not appearance, so they don’t have strict size and shape criteria to meet as the supermarkets do. As a result the Riverford system of food production and retail has far less waste in comparison.