On the outskirts of Barrie, Ont., sunlight washes over the outcast cucumber and parsley stacked on skids at Eat Impact含羞草研究社檚 warehouse.
Workers at the online grocer sort and pack containers with these rejects and misfits 含羞草研究社� tentacled carrots, scarred bananas, bulbous potatoes 含羞草研究社� for home deliveries across southern Ontario.
含羞草研究社淭he goal is helping people eat better, save money and fight food waste all at the same time,含羞草研究社� 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 含羞草研究社� 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.
含羞草研究社淚t either rots in the fridge, the landfill or the farmer含羞草研究社檚 field,含羞草研究社� 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 含羞草研究社渕oderately tapered含羞草研究社� and of 含羞草研究社済ood characteristic green colour含羞草研究社� 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.
含羞草研究社淧rioritizing eating healthy and buying this fresh produce has become harder for many of us,含羞草研究社� Stegink said. 含羞草研究社淥ur idea was to start Eat Impact to connect imperfect, ugly and surplus produce with people that are happy to eat it.含羞草研究社�
She含羞草研究社檚 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 Columbia含羞草研究社檚 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, it含羞草研究社檚 no surprise that many subscribers skew younger.
含羞草研究社淲e含羞草研究社檙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,含羞草研究社� McDonald said, noting that Spud has offered imperfect produce for eight years 含羞草研究社� though business has ramped up recently.
含羞草研究社淎 lot of our customers are physically impaired and can含羞草研究社檛 get to the grocery store themselves. And some people who might rely on takeout now have this option to make healthy meals that aren含羞草研究社檛 hurting their wallets,含羞草研究社� she added.
McDonald herself likes the bananas for smoothies 含羞草研究社� 18 yellow ones for $5 in a recent deal 含羞草研究社� and local grower Fraserland Organics含羞草研究社� 含羞草研究社淧ugly含羞草研究社� 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 含羞草研究社� one of the 10 or so farms Eat Impact draws on directly 含羞草研究社� said online grocers have fostered greater awareness that it含羞草研究社檚 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 含羞草研究社� 含羞草研究社渏ust educating the consumer that there are options for them to purchase groceries at a discounted price,含羞草研究社� 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 含羞草研究社渟hort-coded含羞草研究社� 含羞草研究社� items packaged with an incorrect best-before date.
Toronto-resident Larissa Fitzsimons began buying Odd Bunch含羞草研究社檚 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.
含羞草研究社淚 don含羞草研究社檛 care if it含羞草研究社檚 oddly shaped or whatever, it doesn含羞草研究社檛 really impact me. If someone含羞草研究社檚 willing to give that to you at a discount, that含羞草研究社檚 great savings,含羞草研究社� Fitzsimons said.
The local source of many items meshes with her environmentalism, but she also relishes items from far afield.
含羞草研究社淚t gets you to try different things,含羞草研究社� she said, highlighting that she first sampled a persimmon thanks to the service. Now she含羞草研究社檚 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 含羞草研究社減retty far gone,含羞草研究社� Fitzsimmons said. 含羞草研究社淵ou含羞草研究社檙e not really going to buy soft potatoes.含羞草研究社�
But knobby ones with a blemish or two?
含羞草研究社淥h yeah.含羞草研究社�
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