Nature’s Pride brings Apeel avocados to Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland

Following successful results in Germany and Denmark, Apeel and Nature’s Pride will be expanding the market for Apeel avocados to the Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland. This move will serve to intensify cooperation between the organisations, both of whom share the same vision of reducing food waste and enabling a more sustainable food system in Europe.

Apeel avocados have been available nationwide for quite some time in Germany and Denmark. Measurements during the pilot phase revealed a more than 50% reduction in food waste at retail stores supplied with Apeel avocados from Nature’s Pride. The difference per trailer load is 3,900 avocados, equating to supply chain environmental savings of 640 kg CO2 and 720,000 litres of water. Nature’s Pride and Apeel are not surprised that these results have encouraged other countries to join the initiative. This week has seen the launch of pilot programs in the Netherlands with Apeel avocados being marketed under the EAT ME brand at the Hoogvliet retail chain. Pilots have also started in Norway, while three retail chains are currently in a pilot phase in Switzerland.

“To facilitate market expansion, we are increasing our capacity to apply Apeel to produce. We are working intensively with Apeel to scale up the Apeel process so we can supply even more customers and widen the scope of our efforts to fight food waste. We are also expanding the range of Apeel-treated products. We hope to start with mangos in early 2021. In this way, we want to introduce greater numbers of consumers in Europe to our products with Apeel,” explains Adriëlle Dankier, Chief Commercial Officer of Nature’s Pride.

“We are thrilled that more and more retailers in Europe are experiencing the benefits of Apeel produce. With Apeel, retailers are dramatically reducing food waste in stores and for shoppers at home, while growing sales and helping the planet. That’s something we can only achieve with innovative partners like Nature’s Pride and we’re pleased to be expanding our footprint with them,” said James Rogers, CEO and founder of Apeel.

The plant-derived materials in the Apeel coating help to retain moisture and reduce oxidation in the fruit for an extended period. This maintains quality for longer and slows down the rate at which produce spoils. This innovative technology helps growers, suppliers and retailers improve the quality of their products and extend the shelf life. It reduces food waste in the supply chain from the grower to the shop shelf and kitchen table.

In Europe some 88 million tons of food is wasted annually, with associated costs estimated at €143 billion. In the Netherlands, for example, households waste an average of 34.3 kilograms of solid food per person per year. For the whole of the Netherlands, this means that consumers waste 589 million kilograms of solid food per year.