The Low-Hanging Fruit to Solving Food Waste

This post is also available in: Français

“To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.” – François de La Rochefoucauld

Over the span of a single year, the average American family will waste a third of the food they purchase, and 63% of the food that is being thrown away could have been eaten. Since 1974, in North America alone, food waste has increased by 50%. So, what changed?

Over the last decade, food has become more than just something that fuels our bodies; it is a topic of conversation, a subject to dissect. Widely represented on social media, it consumes our daily feeds, yet we hardly think twice before throwing away an odd-looking carrot or a bruised apple, which eventually leads to bruised or imperfect fruit making up 40% of food waste.

Seeing the rise in food waste and its effect on the planet—food waste releases a greenhouse gas that is 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide and represents 8% of total emissions—has encouraged companies such as Loop Mission to develop alternative ways to reduce food waste and waste in general. Loop Mission is dedicated to repurposing foods deemed as “imperfect” into cold-pressed juices, thus reducing waste of perfectly viable produce. Other companies are promoting the benefits of freezing fruits and vegetables to elevate their sustainability and maintain their nutritional benefits.

Curiously enough, studies have shown that health-conscious households tend to waste more food since their diets are centred around fresh fruits, vegetables, and other perishable items. That is why, at Evive, sustainability starts even before the ingredients have made their way to the warehouses.

We use fresh fruits and vegetables, picked at their peak ripeness and blended, without accounting for the aesthetic aspect, therefore making Evive’s food waste less than 5%.

Since produce does not lose its nutritional benefits if bruised or imperfectly shaped, or even after freezing, we aim to reduce our carbon footprint by using these products as much as possible. Moreover, since our smoothies and lunches are portioned off and frozen into cubes, there is little chance of food waste on the consumer side of things as well.

To lend a helping hand and reduce food waste, follow the three R’s: reduce, reuse, and recycle, and try to:

What are some of the ways you and your family are reducing food waste in your household? We want to know!