Surviving the journey from farm to fork is a complicated process with many hurdles along the way. Some produce is discarded before it even leaves the farm, some is rejected when it arrives at the supermarket or restaurant and some simply ends up in a household bin. It’s kind of like Total Wipeout for fruit and veg, where the obstacles include: rigorous aesthetic criteria for produce, over-forecasted demand and inefficiencies in storing and distributing.
DID YOU KNOW...
...that a third of all food produced
globally is wasted?
7.2 million
tons of food & drink are thrown away each year
£60
The average cost per household of food waste
1 in 4
If we stop wasting food that could have been eaten, the benefit to the planet would be the equivalent of taking 1 in 4 cars off the road
We Think We Can
Do Gooder
That’s why we make delicious condiments using surplus ingredients.
Our ketchup is made with fresh fruit & veg sourced directly from farms, whilst our mayos are made with aquafaba (nutrient-rich water from cooking chickpeas) that is usually thrown away. Condiments are a fantastic way of preserving produce by extending their shelf-life with vinegars and sugars. In other words, less waste, more taste.
The Original Do-Gooder
Growing up on a farm in Scotland, Rubies founder, Jenny, learnt to be resourceful & creative with food
Reading about the problem of food waste, Jenny was shocked by the amount of produce that is rejected because it doesn’t look perfect. She began rescuing produce from New Covent Garden market and experimenting in the kitchen with childhood recipes for jams and chutneys. Fast-forward 10 years and Rubies in the Rubble is one of the pioneering voices in food sustainability, with an award-winning range, stocked nationwide.
WHAT EXACTLY IS SURPLUS?
Produce can be rejected for a number of reasons from curly cucumbers to overly-ripe bananas
When an ingredient isn’t the standard size, it becomes tricky to process. A tiny onion for example doesn’t fit in the peeling machine so has to be processed by hand.
A pear-shaped pear or curly cucumber may not fit in regular supermarket packaging so often get rejected before leaving the farm.
A gnarly carrot or speckled banana can often be rejected due to poor consumer demand as customers are more likely to pick up a perfect looking produce.
Produce going to supermarkets have to have a certain amount of shelf life to be accepted. If an ingredient is too ripe then it will not meet this criteria and will be rejected.
An abundant harvest or a seasonal store promotion can mean the regular supply chain gets disrupted. Surplus can occur at this stage.
WHAT IMPACT IS RUBIES MAKING?
Since we started out, here’s the positive impact that our products have had. With your help we can do even gooder!
992888
kg of fruits and vegetables
832185
kg of CO2E
2966578
miles driven
The Team
Here’s our wonderful team of do-gooders!
