fruit and vegetables
The legislator has made the following quality classes binding as the EU quality standard for fruit and vegetables for the purpose of a better overview of the market and to protect the consumer from inferior goods:
Characteristics common to all classes: whole, firm, sound, clean, pesticide residues are limited to an acceptable level, free of foreign smell and taste, free from pests, free from damage caused by pests, free from excessive moisture, sufficiently developed (ripe) .
The packaging must be stable to protect the products.
Class Criteria:
- Commercial class Extra (H. Extra) highest quality; free from any defect (entire, smooth, firm, turgid), well formed, uniform in color, equal in size.
- Commercial class I (H.I) good quality; slight defects in shape and development, slight defects in color, very slight bruises, sufficient strength.
- Commercial class II (H. II) medium quality; major errors, major color deviations are permissible. In any case, the minimum properties must be observed. Almost all organic items carry the H. II.
Source: Wikipedia
Although we are already trying to react to retail's obsession with beauty with commercial class II, this is not enough for us at Antidote. Since the optical properties really don't play a role in cold juicing , when we buy our ingredients that are 100% organically grown, we try to buy up the rejects that the retail trade doesn't think are sellable. This has many advantages for you, the consumer, but also for us as manufacturers:
- We rarely interfere with retail when purchasing, so we know exactly where our organic ingredients come from.
- Since nobody else wants these goods in the first place, we can achieve slightly lower prices when purchasing them, which we pass on in full in the price of our juice. This means that the Antidote Juice is just as delicious for you - but a little cheaper than our competitors - great, isn't it?
- The farmers and traders are happy to now have a buyer for these goods, they no longer have to worry about them and they earn more from their harvest.
- A new market (we are talking about B-goods or commercial class III) is emerging, with the result that the prices for organic fruit and vegetables in retail should also fall in the long term.
- As a customer, you know that you are doing something for a regional, decentralized merchandise management - feels good, doesn't it?
By the way: slowly but surely something is happening - we are not the only ones with this approach! The three Berlin students Giacomo Blume, Moritz Glück and Daniel Plath published their diploma thesis ' Ugly Fruits ', a concept for the widespread sale of ugly vegetables and have already won the ADC Junior Award 2013 from the Bauhaus University in Weimar in the category of holistic communication. You are now planning to open your first store, starting in our capital Berlin.
Please never forget: We do our best, but you as a customer have the real power to change something. Conscious eating should go hand in hand with conscious consumer behavior, it doesn't matter whether the cucumber is crooked or straight or the apple has a bump, as long as they taste just as delicious as the fruit models.
If you would like to learn more about the topic, it is best to take a look at the further information at Ugly-Fruits . We are also happy to provide you with advice and action by e-mail or in the comments.
eat fresh
stay healthy
know what you consume! Sources (as of July 2nd, 2014):
