Cauliflower or salad in supermarkets is usually sold in whole heads. But why so many families of one or two people? Dutch companies The Greenery and Rijk Zwaan conducted a consumer survey showing that small vegetables can help reduce plant waste.
They recently unveiled a new concept called “Little & Fresh” at the Fruit Attraction fair in Madrid, hoping to attract the attention of southern European producers to this idea. Thus, companies will be able to guarantee year-round supply.
The pilot project was launched this year. About 20 types of vegetables have been put on sale in the Dutch supermarket chain "Jumbo". They are smaller, natural and sold without packaging.
“We see that people are trying to reduce food losses. The Little & Fresh concept meets their needs, as can be seen from the initial test run results, ”says Harm-Jan Eikelenboom, Marketing Manager at The Greenery.
“For this concept, we deliberately opted for organic vegetables. For this, the seeds are supplied by Rijk Zwaan. The vegetables are grown by farmers at Naturelle, the organic division of The Greenery. Natural unpackaged vegetables fit perfectly into this idea. The study of consumer demand shows that a third of the respondents prefer natural products. The second third can choose both that and that. The remaining third do not intentionally buy organic products. It follows that most people are willing to buy organic products. With Little & Fresh, we want to further contribute to increasing the consumption of natural vegetables and fruits, ”says Harm-Jan.
The Little & Fresh range currently includes bell peppers, courgettes, eggplants, broccoli and cauliflower. Various varieties of bok choy and lettuce are also sold chilled.
There are no plans to expand production to small fruits yet. “But never say never. First, we want to add more organic vegetables to the concept. We want to do this after the success of the pilot project, ”explained Harm-Jan. He noted that not all types of vegetables can be grown in reduced sizes, and producers, retailers and consumers "want a uniform product."
“That is why we came to the exhibition in Madrid. We wanted to understand if any of the Spanish farmers would be interested in participating in the project. We want to be able to sell small vegetables year-round. We received enthusiastic initial feedback. The concept is unique, it brings together all the relevant participants in the chain. We have created a one-of-a-kind project in which the entire chain takes part - from the seed supplier to the consumer. ”
Harm Yan Aykelenbum
The Greenery