THE NETHERLANDS AND CALIFORNIA, USA — Apeel Sciences, a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer and one of TIME Magazine’s 50 Genius Companies, and Nature’s Pride, a leading supplier of produce in Europe with a focus on innovation and sustainability, today announced that Apeel avocados are now on store shelves in Europe. As Apeel’s supply partner in Europe, Nature’s Pride has integrated the Apeel solution across its expansive avocado value chain to bring Apeel avocados to Edeka and Netto in Germany, and Salling Group stores Føtex and Bilka in Denmark.
“Approval of Apeel’s technology in Europe demonstrates the European Commission’s commitment to addressing our planet’s massive food waste crisis, which is now understood to be a top contributor to climate change,” said James Rogers, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Apeel Sciences. “Our U.S. partners are realizing the value of Apeel and are halving their food waste in many cases. Our next critical step is assisting retailers across Europe in their efforts to reduce waste, while simultaneously improving profits and enabling customers to enjoy fresh, high quality produce with a longer shelf life and ripe time.”
“Every day we work across the entire chain to create innovative solutions that will make the world healthier and more sustainable. Apeel allows us to significantly reduce food waste, so we are extremely proud that the result of our intensive cooperation has now reached the shelves. We look forward to reaching more consumers in Europe with our products with Apeel,” said Adriëlle Dankier, Chief Commercial Officer of Nature’s Pride.
“Food waste is a major challenge that puts a strain on the environment. This is why this is a high-priority area in Salling Group and we are investing in solutions and initiatives to ensure that we reach our goal: a 50% reduction in food waste leading up to 2030. We are certain that Apeel can help make a difference, not only for us, but also for customers and households. Therefore, we look forward to introducing the solution in Denmark,” said Stephan Bruhn, Director at Salling Group.
“We constantly deal with innovations in the fruit and vegetable segment, since fruit and vegetables are the calling card of our stores, and we look forward to cooperating with Apeel Sciences,” said Rolf Lange, Head of Corporate Communications at EDEKA Zentrale AG & Co. KG.
Since Apeel and Nature’s Pride joined forces to take on the European food waste crisis earlier this year, the European Commission authorized the use of the ingredients in Apeel’s plant-derived coating that has already demonstrated a greater than 50 percent food waste reduction on average at the retail level in the United States. Consumers can discover Apeel produce by the Apeel brandmark on labels and in-store signage, a signal of produce quality, sustainability, and longer-lasting freshness. While Apeel avocados are the first Apeel produce category to arrive in Europe, other categories are expected to rollout in the future.
Food waste in Europe has reached a staggering 88 million tonnes annually, with associated costs estimated at 143 billion euros. In German households, for example, every eighth grocery item is thrown away. This means that 6.7 million tonnes of food goes to waste in homes every year. Calculated per person, this means wastage of two fully packed shopping carts weighing about 82 kilograms with a merchandise value of 234 euros.
Fresh food suppliers and retailers interested in Apeel’s technology can get in touch through Apeel’s website. European retailers interested in avocados with Apeel can contact Nature’s Pride. To discover supermarkets that carry Apeel produce, please use Apeel’s store locator.
ABOUT APEEL PRODUCE
From strawberries to peppers, every fruit and vegetable has a protective peel or skin that nature uses to keep it fresh. Made from materials found in fruit, Apeel adds a little extra “peel” to the surface of fresh produce to slow water loss and oxidation (two factors that cause spoilage). Apeel produce stays fresh for much longer, so you have more time to enjoy it at its most delicious — and much less food and money is wasted. For suppliers and retailers, Apeel’s technology creates an optimal microclimate inside every fruit or vegetable, maintaining quality, extending shelf life, and transportability—with reduced reliance on refrigeration and controlled atmosphere. For more information, see the Apeel FAQ.
ABOUT NATURE’S PRIDE
Nature’s Pride supplies over 230 unique fruit and vegetables from 59 countries, from Ready-to-Eat and exotic fruit and vegetables to delicious berries and off-season products. Together, with its partners, Nature’s Pride makes a difference every day. Nature’s Pride is dedicated to setting the standard in the food supply chain with tasteful products, high service, innovations and contributions to a better world. Sustainability is at the core of its business. Nature’s Pride developed a sustainable Business Plan according to the UN Sustainable Development Goals to improve livelihoods, reduce food waste and reduce environmental impact.
For more information, visit www.naturespride.eu.
ABOUT APEEL SCIENCES
Apeel Sciences is a company that is fighting the global food waste crisis by utilizing nature’s tools to prevent waste in the first place — a sustainable approach to the world’s growing food demands. The company’s plant-derived technology helps fresh food growers, suppliers, and retailers maintain produce quality and extend shelf life, which minimizes food waste from the farm to the retail shelf to the kitchen table.
Apeel Sciences was founded in 2012 with a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help reduce postharvest food loss in developing countries that lack access to refrigeration. Today, Apeel formulations have been proven effective at reducing the rate of spoilage for dozens of USDA Organic Certified and conventional produce categories, and the company works with partners ranging from smallholder farmers and local organic growers to the world’s largest food brands and retailers.
Founded by CEO James Rogers, PhD, Apeel Sciences investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Viking Global Investors, Upfront Ventures, S2G Ventures, Powerplant Ventures, DBL Partners, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UK Department for International Development, and The Rockefeller Foundation. The company is recognized as a 2018 World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer, a Friend of Champions 12.3, a 2019 CNBC Disruptor 50 and a 2019 TIME Best Invention.
Apeel is a trademark of Apeel Technology, Inc. in the European Union and other jurisdictions. Nature’s Pride is a trademark of Nature’s Pride. All other trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners.
