Fruta Feia: A Portuguese cooperative saving "ugly fruit" from waste

Developing and implementing better systems that reduce wastefulness is a corner- stone of any transition to a more sustainable world. In Europe, estimates say that up to 50% of wealthy edible food is lost along the entire food supply chain. Massive waste occurs in the field and at large groceries if products fail to reach pre-defined marketing standards that include rules stablishing what products should look like (not related to health issues) in terms of size and shape and so are considered “ugly” and unsellable. Grocers argue that they have to follow strict cosmetic standards for fruit and vegetables since otherwise consumers will not buy them. The consequence is that tons of edible food are thrown away every year in the most developed coun- tries. However, nowadays there is a growing movement to promote and sell ‘ugly’ products and even large groceries are changing their practices and creating areas dedicated to the sale of out-of-size products at lower prices. In Portugal, it lead to the creation of the cooperative Fruta Feia. A young environmentalist created this cooperative in Lisbon in 2013 under the motto “Pretty People eat Ugly Fruit”. The rapid growth of the cooperative moving from an idea to a successful business that has 14,000 people on the waiting list shows that many people review themselves in a more sustainable consumption model that helps to rescue 15 tons of potential food waste per week. The aim of this paper is to discuss food waste in Portugal and creative ideas to fight it, like the one proposed by Fruta Feia.