Food Waste Is An International Problem But This Simple Natural Product Significantly Extends Fruit & Veg Shelf Life
Table of Contents
The following video highlights how a third of all food produced worldwide is wasted. This means that not only is there waste of fresh food but the land used effectively produced nothing, the fertilisers, energy and transport required were also wasted . This results in a huge volume of carbon being produced with zero benefits to any of us.
Extend Fruit & Veg Shelf Life
As previously, for speed, I have added a series of bullets points listing the key points covered in the video, after which you can watch the video to better understand the idea if you wish.
However, to summarise it all. Fruit and veg can be coated with an additional layer of the naturally occurring edible but tasteless/odourless “fatty acids and glycerides” that fruit and veg produce to naturally protect themselves. This can be done during the normal packing process and costs fractions of a penny.
The Science of Making Fruit & Veg Last Longer: Key Points
The Problem of Food Waste: A staggering one-third of all food produced worldwide is lost or wasted before consumption, a figure that rises to a half for fresh fruits and vegetables [01:03]. This waste contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, ranking third globally if treated as a country [01:50].
Challenges of Existing Methods: Traditional methods like refrigeration are energy-intensive and expensive [02:16]. Other solutions, such as pesticides, animal- or petroleum-derived waxes, and plastic packaging, pose health or environmental issues [02:27].
The Plant-Based Solution (Apeel Sciences): The company, Apeel Sciences, was founded to mimic a plant’s natural protective layer, the cuticle, which is composed of fatty acids and glycerides [03:36]. They take harmless, edible ingredients from the peels, pulp, and seeds of other plants (such as tomato peels) to create an invisible, tasteless, and odourless coating [03:57], [11:19].
Impact of the Coating:
The coating reinforces the natural peel to retain peak flavour, texture, and nutrients for longer without reliance on refrigeration or chemicals [04:21].
Initial tests on finger limes showed an additional week of freshness, even with refrigeration [05:41].
The treatment can more than double the perfect eating window for an avocado, extending it from about a day and a half to four days [10:52], [11:04].
Treated tomatoes can be harvested when fully ripe (red and tasteful) instead of when green, while still having sufficient shelf life for transport [06:34].
Since 2021, the technology has prevented 166 million pieces of produce from going to waste, avoiding the emissions of over 29,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas [08:00].
Industry Challenges: The speaker noted that some in the food and agriculture sector accept “shrink” (waste) as a normal part of business, with some producers expressing that the waste bin is “my best friend,” as it drives repeat purchases [09:20]. The mission is to change this outlook and increase the diversity of produce available globally, particularly in areas without reliable refrigeration [08:54].
This seems such a simple way to Extend Fruit & Veg Shelf Life without using artificial chemicals and at low cost. Clearly it is still in its early stages but, having had approval in the US, Europe and beyond, it seems that the only people that might stop it are those with a vested interest in fruit and veg waste!
The real question I want answered is, could this be used by gardeners to extend shelf life?
