Upmarket retailer Waitrose & Partners has announced that it has relaxed size and shape guidelines for carrots, asparagus and parsnips grown in the UK.
The retailer has also removed some trimming and finishing guidelines to help suppliers maintain social distancing on production and packing lines.
Fresh produce technical manager at Waitrose, Amanda Frisby, commented, “We are committed to supporting our farmers through a really difficult time.
"By changing and being flexible with our specifications it has meant we have minimised wastage of fantastic British produce and it has allowed us to take on even more vegetables for our customers.”
Other Initiatives
The retailer has expanded the size range for asparagus to include produce that would normally go into processing and catering.
Wairose will also include more blemished carrots and parsnips from British suppliers in its vegetable assortment.
These changes in the specification for vegetables is part of the company's strategy to reduce food waste.
In 2016, the retailer introduced the Waitrose Essential ‘A Little Less Than Perfect’ range to cut food waste by offering customers grade two vegetables in larger bags.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
