Tesco selling green oranges in bid to cut waste

Tesco has started selling green oranges, as supermarkets are drastically cutting standards for fruit and vegetables' appearance in a bid to reduce waste. 

The retail giant has announced that it will start selling green satsumas and clementines, which it claims are "perfectly ripe" and will be as sweet as orange-coloured ones.

Higher early season temperatures in Spain have slowed down the natural process by which the skin of the fruit turns orange, meaning many have appeared greener this year.

Satsumas and clementines grow as green fruit to begin with and turn orange towards the end of summer, when the nights become colder.

But in recent years warmer temperatures during the early growing season for satsumas in September and October have continued to remain high into the autumn, thus delaying the natural process by which the fruit turns orange.

The green oranges are not being sold as part of Tesco's "perfectly imperfect" range of vegetables, and will be sold at the same price as regular oranges.   It comes as other UK supermarkets have also branched out to sell less-than-perfect produce.

Earlier this year the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee chairman, Neil Parish MP, said supermarkets should sell “wonky veg” as part of their main fruit and vegetable lines to help cut food waste.

He said knobbly carrots and parsnips did not taste or cook any differently from other vegetables and should be saved from supermarket reject bins.

Now supermarkets including Tesco, Morrisons and Asda have all launched "wonky" veg ranges this year to give customers the option to buy misshapen produce at lower prices.

Tesco launched the Perfectly Imperfect range in March 2016, which features apples, pears, potatoes, parsnips, cucumbers, courgettes, strawberries and frozen mixed berries.