SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – As we celebrate Earth Month, Apeel Sciences, a leading company in supply chain innovation for the fresh produce industry, is proud to announce its environmental achievements for 2023. Apeel has dramatically reduced food waste and its associated environmental impacts with its plant-based technology that creates a natural protective shield around produce. This is another important tool in the global fight against climate change, making fresh produce accessible to more people.
2023 Milestone Achievements:
- Prevented Over 60 Million Pieces of Fruit From Going to Waste: Apeel helps keep fruit fresh longer so that it has more time to be enjoyed by more people.
- Significantly Reduced Greenhouse Gas Emissions: By curbing food waste, Apeel blocked the release of over 9,000,000 kg of CO2-equivalents into the atmosphere–akin to the carbon sequestration of planting 151,600 trees.
- Conserved Water Resources: The use of Apeel’s technology saved 2.7 billion liters of water, equivalent to 1,100 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
“Food waste and its negative effects on our climate are very real, global problems that demand immediate action from us all,” said Luiz Beling, CEO, Apeel Sciences. “Our achievements last year demonstrate that innovative technologies like our plant-based coating that keeps produce fresh longer has a tangible benefit to the planet. We’re contributing to a healthier world by ensuring more food nourishes communities while less ends up in landfills.”
About one-third of our food is lost or wasted through the supply chain, in stores, or in our homes. That equals over a billion tons annually. This inefficiency represents both an economic loss reaching $1 trillion and a missed opportunity to fight hunger, conserve resources, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to the UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2024, food waste accounts for 8–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, highlighting the urgent need for solutions like Apeel’s.
Apeel also helps its partners achieve their own Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals. By selling fresher produce that reduces food waste, companies minimize their environmental impact, enhance food security, and support improved agricultural practices.
“We’re targeting a major source of greenhouse gas emissions when we reduce food waste,” Beling added. “Apeel’s technology is a powerful weapon in suppliers’ and retailers’ arsenals, offering them a way to significantly cut emissions and drive progress towards their own conservation goals.”
To learn more about how Apeel is making a positive impact on our planet, please visit: https://www.apeel.com/impact
METHODOLOGY
In order to calculate the positive impact of our technology, a key input into our Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies is food waste data: the amount of food waste prevented and the place in the supply chain this occurs. We measure our impact on retail food waste by conducting controlled, in-store pilot tests. In these studies, a set of control stores receive standard (untreated or waxed) fruit. The food waste rate in those stores is compared to a second set of stores that receive Apeel-protected fruit. Apeel has measured in-home waste impact in a subset of produce types and end markets. While Apeel expects reductions in consumer waste for our products, our LCA methods take the conservative approach and only include changes in consumer waste when it has been measured using primary data.
ABOUT APEEL
Apeel is on a mission to create a healthier and more sustainable global food system by working with nature to use the power of materials and data sciences. Apeel’s plant-based protection allows for longer-lasting produce by using materials already found in all fruits and vegetables. This protective extra “peel” slows the water loss and oxidation that causes produce to spoil and outperforms existing technologies in maintaining freshness from farm to kitchen. Apeel’s plant-based protection is available for an ever-growing number of categories and markets, including organic and conventionally grown produce. Additionally, Apeel is integrating new data and quality tools that will allow the food system to do more with the extra time created by Apeel’s plant-based protection. Farmers can sell more of what they grow, retailers can sell more of what they source, and people can enjoy more of what they buy, creating a healthier planet and greater abundance for all.
Apeel and Food Gone Good are registered trademarks of Apeel Technology, Inc. in the United States, the European Union, and other jurisdictions. To learn more, visit apeel.com.
