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ENVIRONMENT

Danish producer saves 75 tonnes of ‘ugly’ tomatoes

Healthy production of tomatoes in Denmark, boosted by this year’s warm summer, has not been allowed to go to waste by a producer in Odense.

Published: 18 September 2018 13:16 CEST
Danish producer saves 75 tonnes of 'ugly' tomatoes
Photo: Alfred Pedersen & Søn ApS/Stop Spild Af Mad

Alfred Pedersen & Son, a farm near Denmark’s third city, is one of two producers taking part in an initiative set up earlier this year by NGO Stop Wasting Food (Stop Spild Af Mad) in an effort to cut down wastage by selling irregularly shaped, but otherwise normal produce.

READ ALSO: Danish supermarkets to sell more ugly vegetables

The agreement, which was reached in May with supermarket chains Salling Groups and Rema 1000, enabled vegetables that would otherwise be seen as surplus to be sold at the companies’ stores at discounted prices. 25 øre (3 euro cents) per vegetable sold is donated to Stop Wasting Food under the scheme.

“We have for many years spoken in favour of selling vegetables of this kind in Danish supermarkets. This will help to reduce waste during primary production as well as create growth in the food retail sector. After ten years of debating food waste I am sure that Danish consumers are ready to welcome irregularly shaped vegetables on to supermarket shelves,” Stop Wasting Food's founder Selina Juul said when the scheme was introduced.

Customers have since snapped up the misshapen tomatoes, which have been sold whole and as ‘food waste ketchup’, with a total of 75 tonnes of the produce sold since May, Stop Wasting Food said in a press statement on Tuesday.

100,000 trays of the ‘ugly’ tomatoes, around 50 tonnes, have been sold in that time, along with 25 tonnes of ketchup, according to figures from Alfred Pedersen & Son. Both the tomatoes and ketchup had performed well at stores, the producer’s head of sales Claus Duedal Jakobsen told The Local.

The figures are likely to increase further by the end of the year, with the production season continuing until November, Jakobsen also said.

“Our season continues until the week commencing November 12th and the agreement (with Rema 100 and Salling Groups) continues until the end of the season. So there will be additional kilos, because our production continues right through the season,” he said.

Juul praised the sales success of the scheme and said she hoped to continue and expand it in future production cycles.

“I would love to have even more cooperation between our NGO and the producers,” she told The Local.

Meetings will be held between Stop Wasting Food and partners in the project during the autumn, the NGO founder said.

Jakobsen confirmed he expected a new agreement to be reached with retailers to repeat the scheme next year.

“We certainly want to do that, and we are already engaged in positive dialogue with Rema 1000 and Salling Group over this, so I’m in no doubt that we’re going to continue this next year,” he said.

READ ALSO: Government thinktank to tackle food waste in Denmark

For members

FOOD AND DRINK

Five dishes that every newcomer to Denmark should try at least once

Denmark may have a stellar reputation as a world leader when it comes to fine dining, but it’s also home to plenty of hearty dishes. Here are a few you should try.

Published: 19 April 2024 17:30 CEST
Updated: 16 June 2024 08:24 CEST
Five dishes that every newcomer to Denmark should try at least once

With dozens of Michelin stars scattered across the country, world-famous restaurants like Noma and Geranium and Bocuse d’Or winning chefs, it’s not surprising Denmark is known as a gastronomical destination.

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t many simple, traditional meals that make up an important part of the culinary landscape.

Danish dishes often reflect the country’s agricultural roots, its heavy use of pork and fish and common “meat and two veg” style of meal composition.

Here are a few dishes that are time-honoured favourites in Denmark and, as well as tasting great, might tell you a bit about the Nordic nation’s past and present.

Frikadeller

Frikadeller is Denmark’s answer to Sweden’s köttbullar or meatballs, made famous worldwide by their presence in IKEA cantines.

The Danish version consists of ground meat – commonly pork – rolled into a ball with salt, egg and seasoning like thyme and cumin, fried on a pan. There are other variations and styles but this seems to be the most common.

Usually, the frikadeller are pressed flat to make them more cylindrical than ball-shaped.

They can be served with anything from a salad to pasta or a slice of rye bread, but seem most at home with boiled potatoes, gravy and some cabbage or beetroot.

Look out also for fiskefrikadeller – where the meatballs are made of fish.

Karrysild med æg

Curried herring with egg might sound like a potent mix of ingredients and it can be an acquired taste, but once you’ve got used to it you may join many Danes in favouring it as a rye bread topping on occasions like Easter lunches.

It’s easy to make – you chop up the herring (which can be bought in pre-marinated jars at supermarkets, if you prefer) and mix it with a creamy dressing consisting of mayonnaise, crème fraiche, curry seasoning and red onion.

Mix in some chopped boiled eggs or serve them alongside the curried herring for your finished article. If you want to add a fancy twist, include some chopped apple in the cream for a bit of extra crispness.

Curried herring with egg. Photo: Vibeke Toft/Ritzau Scanpix

Brændende kærlighed

Translating literally to “burning love”, brændende kærlighed is a classic Danish winter dish that will, as advertised, warm you up on cold nights.

It includes buttery mash potatoes and usually a side of pickled beetroot, but its crown it the topping: a hefty portion of chopped bacon, fried up with onions, pepper and sometimes a little chili.

Make sure the bacon is as crisp as possible.

READ ALSO: Five classic Danish cakes you need to try

Grønlangkål

Kål is the Danish word for cabbage. Grønlangkål or “green long cabbage” isn’t a type of cabbage in itself but a way of preparing and serving regular green cabbage, often at Christmas dinners or as a side with a pork-based main like glazed ham, the giant medister sausage or the aforementioned frikadeller meatballs.

Prepare by finely chopping the cabbage, mixing with cream, butter, sugar and muscat, and sautéing on a pain until it is soft.

Grønlangkål (top right of picture) with medister sausage and leverpostej (pate). Photo: Nils Lund Pedersen/NF/Ritzau Scanpix

READ ALSO: Påskefrokost: What are the essentials of a Danish Easter lunch?

Hotdog

Although it wasn’t invented in Denmark, the Danes have certainly made a version of the hotdog their own.

There are a few types which could be considered typically Danish, but the hotdog with rødpølse (“red sausage”), remoulade relish, pickled cucumber and dried fried onions is a classic and arguably the Scandinavian country’s signature street food.

You could also try a fransk hotdog or “French hotdog”, a somewhat blander affair in which the sausage is placed into a hollowed out miniature baguette, usually with ketchup or mayo.

Although fast food has diversified hugely since the hotdog’s arrival in Denmark over a hundred years ago, it is still as popular as ever – just ask the country’s police officers.

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