Sainsbury’s has released a new guide that shows which fruit and vegetables should be stored next to each other to help shoppers reduce food waste at home.
The retailer said shoppers could save over £100 a year by better “matchmaking” of their fresh produce. It said that around 20 per cent of bought fruit and vegetables are thrown out.
Named the Culinary Companionship Code, the new infographic guide is compiled by Sainsbury’s technologists who suggest fridge pairings such as berries and grapes, or pineapples and lemons paired together at room temperature.
“Our guide gives new meaning to the word ‘frenemies’, highlighting certain fruits, which just don’t get along! Apples and watermelons are long-term enemies while bananas don’t play well with others and should be kept on their own,” said head of sustainability at Sainsbury’s, Paul Crewe.
“On the other hand, there are some more sociable fruits. Cherries are immune to the negative effects of the ethylene produced by others and can therefore be paired with a variety of partners.”
Other successful ‘vegemates’ listed on the guide include onions and garlic kept in cool dark places, cucumber and peppers kept away from fruit as they are spoiled by ethylene, kiwis and avocados, tomatoes and plums, and nectarines and pears.
Helen White, head of Love Food Hate Waste, said: “Storing food correctly to make the most of its shelf life at home is key to reducing the 4.2 million tonnes of good food that goes to waste from UK households every year.
“Families could make substantial savings each year simply by throwing away less food. Making what might seem like small changes to how you store food can make a big difference, for example keeping fruit in the fridge instead of the fruit bowl can help it to last longer.”
Produce ‘frenemies’ include apples and watermelons as apples produce high levels of ethylene, which makes the melons mushy, onions and potatoes, as potatoes are prone to being tainted with the onion flavour if stored together. Bananas should not be stored with any other produce due to the high level of ethylene they produce, Sainsbury's said.
