Uglies potato chips are made using potatoes that don’t meet the esthetic expectations of producers and are used to make small batches of kettle chips. Doing this reduces unnecessary food waste by using produce that may have otherwise been disposed of. Their website claims that food waste is landfills largest contributor, but they have no source for this. Uglies goal is to reduce some of this food waste by upcycling. According to Uglies, upcycled foods “use ingredients that otherwise would not have gone to human consumption, are procured and produced using verifiable supply chains, and have a positive impact on the environment.” Their company uses potatoes that are the wrong size, shape, or color along with some that have too high of a sugar content for other manufacturers. They also get potatoes that have been bruised or damaged, as well as farmer surplus. They don’t use any potatoes that are diseased, rotting, or unripe.
Uglies claims that “26% of U.S. produce gets discarded for cosmetic reasons”. Consumers have grown to expect their food to be perfect looking, regardless of whether it tastes any differently or not. Many other companies like Misfits Market, Imperfect Foods, and The Ugly Co. are working to limit food waste because of these imperfections, and are spreading awareness of their cause.
Uglies is also passionate about child hunger, and how some food waste could easily be donated to those in need. 10% of Uglies’ profits are donated to Viva Kids, which is a charitable organization that fights to end hunger on a global scale.
Quotes from: https://www.ugliessnacks.com/#millions
Comments
I think this is a great program to help reduce food waste. In fact, I noticed today that they were selling Uglies at the Mill! It’s crazy that over a quarter of all produce that is good to eat gets discarded for cosmetic reasons. I would be interested to see how much this prevents food waste.