UK retailer Waitrose has given its backing to growers affected by inclement weather in the Western Cape of South Africa by confirming that it will sell bags of weather-blemished apples.
According to fruitnet.com, the supermarket chain has already offered customers weather-blemished apples this year from UK growers, some discoloured and others damaged by hail.
Greg Sehringer, Waitrose apple buyer, told fruitnet.com, "We’ve been stocking weather-affected apples for eight years now, and are proud to support not only our own farmers here in the UK, but also growers abroad, who are sometimes hit by unpredictable weather.
"It’s a testament to our customers that they’re savvy enough to trust that the fruit will be just as delicious, even if the apples don’t look as perfect as usual."
From 20 May, the Waitrose Foundation South African weather-blemished apples will be available in 263 branches across the UK, priced at £2.
The Waitrose Foundation is a partnership created in 2005 to help improve the lives of the farm workers and smallholders who grow produce in South Africa, Kenya and Ghana.
© 2015 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Ciara Mooney.
