On the outskirts of Barrie, Ont., sunlight washes over the outcast cucumber and parsley stacked on skids at Eat ImpactB次元官网网址檚 warehouse.
Workers at the online grocer sort and pack containers with these rejects and misfits B次元官网网址� tentacled carrots, scarred bananas, bulbous potatoes B次元官网网址� for home deliveries across southern Ontario.
B次元官网网址淭he goal is helping people eat better, save money and fight food waste all at the same time,B次元官网网址� said Anna Stegink, who founded Eat Impact in late 2022.
With prices soaring and budgets stretched, consumers are turning increasingly to so-called imperfect food to save on produce that a fresh crop of online grocers says is just as tasty B次元官网网址� if a little gnarled.
Billions of pounds of Canadian produce go to waste every year, much of it because it fails to live up to the strict cosmetic criteria adhered to by the retail industry.
B次元官网网址淚t either rots in the fridge, the landfill or the farmerB次元官网网址檚 field,B次元官网网址� said Stegink.
Mainstream retailers sell primarily first-grade fruits and vegetables, leaving farmers and distributors stuck with heaps of fresh, perfectly edible but not quite photogenic produce.
Cucumbers, for example, must conform to tight length and width restrictions and be straight, only B次元官网网址渕oderately taperedB次元官网网址� and of B次元官网网址済ood characteristic green colourB次元官网网址� to achieve first grade classification, federal agricultural regulations state.
Meanwhile, grocery bills keep climbing. Canadian families will pay nearly $1,800 more on average for groceries this year than they did in 2022, according to an annual report on the food industry by researchers at four Canadian universities.
B次元官网网址淧rioritizing eating healthy and buying this fresh produce has become harder for many of us,B次元官网网址� Stegink said. B次元官网网址淥ur idea was to start Eat Impact to connect imperfect, ugly and surplus produce with people that are happy to eat it.B次元官网网址�
SheB次元官网网址檚 not alone.
Further west, online grocer Spud says it saved nearly 84,000 pounds of imperfect produce from the landfill last year by selling everything from chipped apples to odd-shaped oranges across British ColumbiaB次元官网网址檚 Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast as well as the Calgary and Edmonton areas.
Subscribers save up to 50 per cent on their items compared to traditional brick-and-mortar outlets, said manager Emma McDonald. They have the added benefit of eating the fresher food made possible by direct-to-doorstep delivery that bypasses the produce aisle. About 90 per cent of its inventory turns over within 48 hours, she said.
Given the savings, waste awareness and bent toward regional organic goods, itB次元官网网址檚 no surprise that many subscribers skew younger.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e serving families and multi-person households that are a bit busier, that are looking to save time or are prioritizing that organic, local aspect,B次元官网网址� McDonald said, noting that Spud has offered imperfect produce for eight years B次元官网网址� though business has ramped up recently.
B次元官网网址淎 lot of our customers are physically impaired and canB次元官网网址檛 get to the grocery store themselves. And some people who might rely on takeout now have this option to make healthy meals that arenB次元官网网址檛 hurting their wallets,B次元官网网址� she added.
McDonald herself likes the bananas for smoothies B次元官网网址� 18 yellow ones for $5 in a recent deal B次元官网网址� and local grower Fraserland OrganicsB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址淧uglyB次元官网网址� potatoes, which Spud sells in five-pound bags for $6.
Many produce delivery services have relationships with nearby producers. Vicky Ffrench, who runs Cookstown Greens B次元官网网址� one of the 10 or so farms Eat Impact draws on directly B次元官网网址� said online grocers have fostered greater awareness that itB次元官网网址檚 just as easy to enjoy a parsnip or parsley root that may not have grown to full size, or a potato that might look like a heart.
Spreading the word further remains one of the biggest challenges B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址渏ust educating the consumer that there are options for them to purchase groceries at a discounted price,B次元官网网址� Ffrench said.
Odd Bunch, launched by 25-year-old Divy Ojha 18 months ago, offers seven different produce boxes up to once a week, gleaned from farms and greenhouses in southwestern Ontario, the Niagara region and the Eastern Townships of Quebec, though they also stock from Mexico and California, especially in winter.
The company recently launched in Ottawa, and serves most of the area between London, Ont. and Montreal.
It also offers foods that were produced in surplus as well as products that were B次元官网网址渟hort-codedB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� items packaged with an incorrect best-before date.
Toronto-resident Larissa Fitzsimons began buying Odd BunchB次元官网网址檚 fruit and veg two years ago before switching to Eat Impact, which she likes for the pick-and-choose flexibility of their drop-down menu for weekly boxes.
B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 care if itB次元官网网址檚 oddly shaped or whatever, it doesnB次元官网网址檛 really impact me. If someoneB次元官网网址檚 willing to give that to you at a discount, thatB次元官网网址檚 great savings,B次元官网网址� Fitzsimons said.
The local source of many items meshes with her environmentalism, but she also relishes items from far afield.
B次元官网网址淚t gets you to try different things,B次元官网网址� she said, highlighting that she first sampled a persimmon thanks to the service. Now sheB次元官网网址檚 a regular buyer of the sweet fruit.
Most big-box grocers offer discounts on goods that are nearing their best-before date. But often the produce is B次元官网网址減retty far gone,B次元官网网址� Fitzsimmons said. B次元官网网址淵ouB次元官网网址檙e not really going to buy soft potatoes.B次元官网网址�
But knobby ones with a blemish or two?
B次元官网网址淥h yeah.B次元官网网址�
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