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| Too curvy or just right? Photo: cyborgsuzy/flickr |
"July 1 marks the return to our shelves of the curved cucumber and the knobbly carrot," Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, says. "More seriously, this is a concrete example of our drive to cut unnecessary red tape ... It makes no sense to throw perfectly good products away, just because they are the 'wrong' size and shape."
For years, the European Commission regulated the size and shape of fruits and vegetables sold on the continent.
The Commission has repealed standards for 26 items: apricots, artichokes, asparagus, eggplant, avocados, beans, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflowers, cherries, zucchini, cucumbers, cultivated mushrooms, garlic, hazelnuts in shell, headed cabbage, leeks, melons, onions, peas, plums, ribbed celery, spinach, walnuts in shell, watermelons and chicory.
Ten items, accounting for 75 percent of all fresh produce sold, will still be regulated for size and appearance. They are apples, citrus fruit, kiwi fruit, lettuces, peaches and nectarines, pears, strawberries, sweet peppers, table grapes and tomatoes. However, retailers can still sell blemished items from this category provided they label them "intended for processing."
Officials hope the new rules will cut down on waste.
"Producers and suppliers won't be stuck with as many leftovers, so there'll be less food waste," Jim Fitzpatrick, Britain's Food and Farming Minister, told the Telegraph newspaper.
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