The Truth About Ugly Produce
Did you know? Grocery stores follow strict cosmetic standards for the produce they buy. But fruits and vegetables don’t grow in perfect shapes or sizes. As a result, a large portion of every harvest gets rejected, even though it’s still perfectly fresh and entirely edible.
Here are the top 5 reasons that produce is rejected:
- Too large
- Too small
- Slightly misshapen
- Minor blemishes or surface marks
- Doesn’t meet the “cosmetic standards” of grocery stores
The waste of perfectly edible, nutritious food is where we step in.
As a food bank, we’ve moved away from the usual offerings of mainly preserved, canned goods and moved towards a fresh-focused menu, emphasizing the importance of healthy communities. So, we rescue the rejected, still very fresh produce, sort through all of it that comes in, and offer it to our communities (direct and agency distribution).
Last summer, the Grassy Lake Potato Company had 40,000 lbs of surplus potatoes and no buyers. Those potatoes were at risk of going to waste without enough storage to keep them safely. The GVFB stepped in to connect with their team and rescue the entire load, sorting and distributing it to individuals and families in need.
These potatoes were one of many instances. Another time, we received over 1,000 lbs of avocados—fresh and delicious but rejected because they were just an inch smaller than the grocer’s standard size. Size is a common reason for rejection, which is why we also received 11 full pallets of corn with kernels slightly too small. Still fresh. Still delicious. Still nourishing. Check out what the corn looked like here.
These are just a few of the many examples of fresh food we rescue every day. As our CEO David always says, “There’s no shortage of food —just a distribution problem.” And we’re proud to be part of the solution, redirecting fresh food to families and homes who need it most.
Here are some of the other funky fruits and vegetables we’ve received from local farmers:
