The result is that they have been left to rot in the fields and are now being ploughed back in.
It seems to me that consumers should be given a chance to buy these potatoes. I know that we perceive and expect the new potato as being small, but if they could carry a label explaining what has happened, I believe many people would opt to support our farmers rather than condone this massive exercise in waste. And it would support our labelling and printing industries!
Yes, this labelling would cost money, but it would also help consumers to see the major multiple retailers as humanist and ‘having a heart’, as well as working to prevent waste; something at the heart of many a company strategy this year.
I already buy Hovis bread labelled as Made by British Farmers, with the hope that some of the revenue goes to fund this already tough sector of the industry. Giving the consumer the chance to make a purchase with a charitable or environmental cause seems to me to be a double-win situation. I hope the vegetable buyers can instigate some point of sale material in-store. (Eg ‘These carrots are misshaped, but taste just as sweet’; innocent-style labelling that makes us smile but with a strong message.)
I always love the milk cartons and cheeses that are sold featuring pictures of farmers. Let’s bring back the humanity into the food industry. The consumer may prove not quite so fickle as you may think.
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