Here at Anova, we LOVE food - but we don't love wasting it. So when we found out that over 20 billion pounds of food is thrown away every year simply because it doesn’t look “pretty” enough, we decided to do something about it. This month, to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day, Anova is teaming up with Imperfect Foods to raise awareness around food waste. Since 2015, Imperfect Foods has disrupted the food system by saving produce deemed “cosmetically imperfect” and delivering them to customers' doors at a discounted rate.
We love their mission and we love food, so we wanted you - our #anovafoodnerd community - to get in on the action. From April 8th through April 22nd, we’re offering you 50% off your first Imperfect Foods box with every purchase in the US direct from our site. Simply visit Anovaculinary.com and select your favorite item(s). A code will be sent straight to your inbox after checkout is completed.
Skip the grocery lines and use your Anova Precision® Cooker, Anova Precision® Vacuum Sealer or accessories to create restaurant quality meals with discounted produce (hello curvy cucumber!) all while combating food waste. Without ever having to leave your kitchen. That’s what we call a win.
Why Food Waste Matters
Food waste is a huge issue that affects everyone on the planet, yet we rarely think twice before tossing our leftovers into the bin. In the US, an average family of four throws away over $1800 in food every year. Going even further, 40% of all food in the US goes uneaten while one third of the world’s produce gets thrown away each year - the equivalent of $218 billion worth of food. This, in a world where one in seven people go hungry and 21% of our freshwater supply goes to producing wasted food.
Food waste also directly contributes to climate change. Food sent to landfills produces methane, a powerful greenhouse gas 23 times as potent as CO2. Each year, wasted food emits more than 3 billion tons of these gases. Reducing food waste is one of the top three ways to reverse global warming and it's a problem we can all play a role in solving.
Less Waste with Anova Precision® Vacuum Sealer
Earlier this month, we wrote a (pretty awesome) blog on how to keep your produce fresher, longer. As a refresher, one way to greatly extend the lifespan of many different kinds of food from cheese to vegetables to fish is through vacuum sealing. That's because vacuum sealing deprives your food of oxygen, which means that harmful mold and bacteria will be prevented from growing. An added benefit of keeping your food from contact with the air is that moisture cannot evaporate – protecting your sealed food from dehydration and freezer burn. Sealing your food and removing excess air also means that flavors and juices are locked in.
About Imperfect Foods
Each year, 20 billion pounds of produce from farms goes unsold because they don’t meet the strict cosmetic standards of grocery stores. In other words - the food isn’t “pretty enough.” These imperfections are often small quirks in appearance - too big, too small, too curvy, off color. They don’t actually impact the flavor or nutrition. And as we all know, it’s impossible to make all fresh food fruit and veggies grow a certain way.
Well, in 2015 Imperfect Foods decided to take action to change the way consumers choose to pick their grocery items. They take unwanted, “ugly” produce and other grocery items from farms and stores, offering customers direct-to-door groceries at prices 30% lower than market value. They have saved over 100 billion pounds of food from going to waste in just 5 years. Yes, you heard us right - 100 billion pounds!
And don’t worry omnivores, there’s more than just fruits and veggies on the menu. Imperfect Foods has a selection of pantry items, dairy products, non dairy-alternatives, eggs, nuts, responsibly-sourced proteins and more. You can pick and choose what you want to receive, making the subscription friendly for everyone. Save yourself a trip to the store and do some good at the same time.
You can visit the campaign page here to learn more and see if Imperfect delivers to your area.
As always, leave comments and questions below.
Until next time,
Anastasia