At FareShare Cymru, we believe that no good-to-eat food should go to waste, especially at a time when 1 in 5 adults in Wales face food insecurity. While it’s inevitable that some food will be wasted along the food chain, there’s one phenomenon that, if prevented, could reduce our food waste considerably: the rejection of wonky produce.  

Since the dawn of time, fruits and vegetables have been imperfect. As is with all natural things, they come in all shapes and sizes and sometimes they don’t grow as expected. In fact, the image we have created of the ‘prototype’ for fruits and vegetables is likely more unnatural than the variety of shapes, sizes, colours and blemishes we actually see in nature.

As Tom Bradshaw, the Vice President of the National Farmers Union for England and Wales told the BBC, “Consumers have been conditioned to believe that a potato looks a certain way, [but] we need to be more relaxed about appearance,”.

It’s true: in today’s world, our obsession with outward appearances influences all our decisions, right down to the food that we buy. If we can look past the imperfections of wonky produce, we could reduce food waste in all parts of the food chain, postively impact both people and the planet.  

At the farm

In the UK, 25% of food is wasted before it’s even left the farm. This happens due to various factors such as pests, diseases, weather conditions, technological limitations, supermarket’s strict aesthetic requirements. While many of these factors are unavoidable, the high standards of supermarkets for the appearance of produce unnecessarily contribute to a significant amount of waste. If food has imperfections or is oddly shaped, does it make it less nutritious? In short, the answer is no. 

With the climate changing, and the weather becoming more extreme and unpredictable, it’s no question that crops are going to change – be that in yield, shape and size. In 2023 in the UK, vegetable yields dropped by 5%, while fruit production volumes dropped by 12%. Evidently, the standards of ‘perfect’-looking produce are becoming harder to obtain, especially in large quantities. To combat this, we as consumers must change our standards. That is, we shouldn’t lower our standards but instead change our expectations to accommodate fruit and vegetables that are still perfectly edible, but that don’t look exactly how we want them to. There should be a place for wonky produce in this world, after all, nobody’s perfect, not even our fruit and veg!  

At the shop

By the time our food ends up in the supermarket, many choices have already been made on our behalf regarding the appearance of our food. Whilst many of us are open to the idea of wonky produce, the stringent assessment of retailers means a lot of produce is lost before we’ve had the chance to see it on the shelves. 

In attempts to prevent imperfect produce from going to waste, many supermarkets and businesses are embracing the wonkiness and encouraging customers to buy wonky produce by selling it for a lower price. At FareShare Cymru, we’re playing our part in the wonky produce mission by helping food suppliers and retailers to redistribute their rejected produce to community food groups and charities all over Wales. Whilst produce being misshapen is not the only reason that food ends up with us, it is a factor that contributes to the large quantities of fruit and vegetables we receive weekly. By providing somewhere for imperfect produce to end up that isn’t landfill, and where it can help to feed people across the country, FareShare Cymru is turning an environmental problem into a force for social good. 

At home

As for at home, we can make small, easy changes to prevent wonky produce from ending up in the bin. For example, in a bag of produce there’s often a few misshapen or blemished pieces. By cutting around the imperfections, instead of throwing a whole item away, you can easily reduce your food waste – it’s really as simple as that. Another way you can use up wonky produce is by using it for soups or smoothies; it all looks the same once blended! 

By recognising that wonky produce is here to stay we can make use of more produce, meaning less of it will go to waste. With food insecurity on the rise in Wales, it’s absurd that perfectly good produce is rejected simply because of its appearance. Additionally, with our planet facing climate change, and increasingly unpredictable weather, we must do what we can to reduce carbon emissions and ensure that there’s enough food for everyone. Embracing wonky produce is a simple but effective step towards minimising food waste and should be implemented in all parts of the food chain.