As mentioned before we have included more figs in our mix as the demand for these flowers are quite high. Yes, you read correctly flowers!. A fig is actually not a fruit but a flower inverted into itself and one of the oldest “fruits” known to man. It is thought to have originated from Asia minor and its use has been recorded as far back as 2500 B.C.

Furthermore figs have been and are still used as a sweetener in cooking both in North Africa and the Middle East as it is a great substitute for sugar.

Figs are even believed, by some scholars, to have been the forbidden fruit picked by Eve in the Bible.

Unfortunately the fig season is running to a close, and we will be replacing figs with another wonderful fruit soon so enjoy them while you can.

Have a Fruitful week!

Fruit Guru

It has been a busy week for us (seems like suddenly everyone has returned to work after the Summer and wants fruit!).

Bananas have been ripe all week. Our favourite variety is Cavendish - other varieties taste a bit “stringy” and are harder to purchase at the optimum point of ripeness. The Cavendish banana is at its best when it is yellow with green tips. Don’t believe me? Check out the comment someone left on our website today following a “fruit give-out” at Covent Garden tube station this morning:

Dear Fruitfuloffice,

I would just like to thank you for the free banana this morning that was handed to me at Covent Garden underground.

It was delicious and a healthy alternative.

Cheers,

[XX]

A lot of clients have also been telling us how much they have been enjoying the seasonal figs (in both baskets and boxes). Thank you for your feedback! In response, we have decided to increase the number of figs in the basket from next week onwards.

Enjoy!

Fruit Guru

We have recently started providing fruit to London Zoo with the aim of cutting down on waste food and benefitting the animals. The fruit is perfectly edible but fails to meet our strict quality control standards for delivery to our clients. Instead of it being wasted, it is provided to the zoo twice weekly where it is put to good use in supplementing the animals’ regular diet of vegetables and seeds. Believe me when I tell you that the animals request only the best-tasting fruit which is why the London Zoo picked us!

How many double deckers could we fill up each day with the top 5 fruit & veg we throw away whole/untouched? See image for answer!

According to research by WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme), every tonne of wasted food is responsible for 4.2 tonnes of CO2 and the food we throw away unnecessarily is responsible for the equivalent of 18 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year – the same as the CO2 emitted by a fifth of the cars circulating on UK roads.

Busy Brits shun hard-to-peel oranges

It appears that consumers are finding getting their 5 A DAY even more time consuming. For the third year in a row, orange consumption has dropped – this time by 600 million tonnes, or 2% on last year. On the other hand, consumption of soft citrus fruits such as satsumas and tangerines has increased by 35 and 60% respectively, clearly demonstrating consumer preference for easy-peelers. Consumers claim that the juice of oranges tends to make a right mess on their desks. Nothing new for us since we only include soft citrus fruits in our mix for exactly this reason! The statistics were provided by TNS, who are a client of ours. Great work!

Demotivated workforce consider leaving their job in the next year

A surprising bit or research by Investors in People revealed that one in three UK employees is demotivated at work. More significantly, 43% are considering taking action and leaving within the next 12 months.  

A lack of career path was the most demotivating factor, with 24%, for people who have been in their role for one to two years. This is partly explained by employers focusing their efforts on the initial recruitment and induction stage but then, as employees settle in, letting employee development fall down the list of priorities.

Investors in People is an organisation whose main stakeholder is the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills.

Please click on the image to view the full article

The miracle fruit that turns sour food sweet

Although this story has done the rounds, we include it here for the benefit of those of you who may have missed it.

Native to West Africa, the synsepalum dulcificum is not much bigger than a grape. The “miracle fruit”, as it is being called, has become the toast of the culinary elite for its miraculous ability to make sour things taste sweet. The berry contains a glycoprotein that temporarily masks your mouth’s ability to taste sour and bitter notes. Lemons suddenly taste like sugary lemonade, vinegar takes on a peculiar treacly tang and Irish stout tastes frighteningly similar to chocolate milkshake.

Miracle Fruit does not like being frozen so the fruit must be picked, packed and sent fresh. It must reach the consumer within 72 hours of harvest and it should be consumed within the next 72. This means that, unless it can ever be grown in the UK, you won’t be finding it in our basket or boxes – since we NEVER buy air-freighted fruit.

Have a great week!

Fruit Guru

Going into September, the Summer fruit season has certainly started coming to an end. For this reason, I have changed the fruit mix to reflect this:

• Blueberries are out. We have now included them for several weeks in our fruit baskets but availability and, subsequently, quality is down. You want to avoid blueberries when some punnets start appearing with mould …
• Figs are in. The season for figs has started! Figs are a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps to control blood pressure. This is important because most diets are poor in potassium. At the moment they come from Turkey (the Greek ones are still a bit green) but availability will spread Eastwards along the Mediterranean basin countries as the season progresses.

Have a fruitful week!

Fruit Guru