Supermarket Fresh fruit and vegetables going off quicker?

It's not the fault of the farmers - they will ensure their produce leaves the farm in just the right condition to reach the customer in peak condition.

I have an Ocado order coming tomorrow, and will note how long the fruit and vegetables last.

Quite a long time ago, one of my son’s friends had a holiday job in Tesco. One of his jobs was packing apples into bags for sale. He was told to put one bad (or less good) apple into each bag.

We noticed months ago that all fresh produce is going off within days.
I now buy frozen veg,except for broccoli.
And fruit we buy as and when we fancy some.

Blueberries are the worst ones for me, they go mouldy so quickly, especially from the local coop. Tesco's last longer.
And strawberries need to be eaten fast too, I find.

Both Tesco and Sainsbury CEO have blamed Brexit as the cause of all the issues.

I try to buy fruit and veg that is not pre-packed. Most of mine comes with my weekly on line Sainsbury's order. Two weeks ago the loose carrots were replaced with pre-packed. On second day (two days before the use by date) the were going soft and starting to rot. I complained and got a refund.

All other veg and fruit has been OK, especially the different cabbages.

In also top up during the week with a Morrisons quick shop. Again, all loose fruit and veg. In like their wonky selections. It's all been brilliant and lasted ages.

Broccoli never lasts very long. I grow it and it has to be eaten within 48 hrs of picking. I use that on the day I buy it.

My fingers seem to be adding and taking off letters. Sorry for typos.

I’ve noticed that although I take them out of their plastic as soon as they are delivered they are very wet. I assume this is the way they are kept chilled. I always put them in the bottom of the fridge and the glass shelf just above quickly collects moisture which then drops down into the vegetable containers. I attempt to dry everything off but still the moisture continues. I have reduced the amount of “fresh” veg I buy and old potatoes and sweet potatoes are kept in a wicker hamper in a cool room. However, I find new potatoes in their plastic bags even though taken out have to go in the fridge.i

Whitewavemark2

Both Tesco and Sainsbury CEO have blamed Brexit as the cause of all the issues.

Well, that's odd because my potatoes came from Pembrokeshire!

It’s probably issues all along the supply chain. Food not picked at the optimum time due to a shortage of workers; problems in the haulage industry; import delivery hold ups caused by Brexit; and staff shortages in stores meaning that short-life food does not get out on the shelves as quickly as possible.

If, in trying to economise, people are not buying as much as they used to but stores are still buying in the same quantity, food will remain on the shelves for longer. Plastic packaging doesn’t help as a it creates a micro-environment for bacteria to flourish.

Ironic that with food prices rocketing, quality at the point-of-sale is plummeting.

What's the purpose of those thin absorbant pads you often get in posh fruit packaging, like underneath each peach or nectarine? Could they somehow be put in all plastic packaging?

I do not think Brexit is a cause, we have just returned home after a week in France and we were having exactly the same problem there, oranges rotting, browning of grapes and a bag of leaves opened 3 days after purchase (and kept in a fridge) were slimy and inedible.

I wonder whether it is to do, tree fruit apart, to do with the way so many fruit and veg are force grown under glass. It is not the growing under glass is the problem but, as with animals, methods of growing aimed at speeding up the time a crop goes from seed to marketable product.