Iglo: frozen food key in fight against food waste

Although 75 percent of Dutch people think about wasting food when they buy fruit and vegetables, the same percentage regularly throw vegetables away because they have passed their expiry date. Iglo suggests that much of this food waste could be reduced if home cooks opted for frozen vegetables more often.

Research

Research by market research agency Motivaction shows that more than half of the consumers would choose frozen products more often if they were sure that they are more sustainable, healthier and tastier. 79 percent of those questioned said they had heard or read little about the advantages of frozen foods. The Dutch are three times more attracted to fresh products than to products from the frozen section of the supermarket.

Benefits

Michel Acda, general manager of Iglo Netherlands, thinks people are more likely to buy fresh because there is too little knowledge about the benefits of frozen foods: "Our gut might tell us it's best to buy fresh because it seems healthier. But that is not always the case. This is partly due to the distance the product has to travel and the time between harvesting and actual consumption. Frozen products are harvested at their ripest moment and are then brought to far below freezing point at lightning speed. Frozen products therefore retain their nutritional value and freshness.

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