Ivanka Trump Instagram – This spring, a second-generation strawberry farmer in California stood in his fields with two generations of farmers by his side. Rows of ripe, red berries glistened in the sun — perfectly edible, yet destined to go unharvested because they were too small to end up in grocery stores. The farmer had already paid for the land, plants, water, fertilizer, and labor, but without a buyer, it didn’t make economic sense to pay workers to harvest the fruit. Eventually, he had no choice but to till the fruit back into the soil. Multiply this decision across thousands of farms nationwide, and the scale of the problem becomes staggering: a system that forces growers to shoulder the cost while perfectly good, edible food goes to waste.
Every year in the U.S., 30% of fruit and vegetables grown by hard-working farmers never leave the field, primarily because it doesn’t meet appearance standards like size, shape, or color. More than 36 billion pounds of surplus produce went unharvested or unsold on U.S. farms in 2023, representing an estimated economic loss of $13 billion. Consider strawberries alone: 400 million pounds are plowed under or left behind annually. The cost is more than wasted fruit. Farmers lose revenue on produce they can’t sell, and communities miss out on nourishment that should have made it to their kitchen tables.
There’s a better way. It starts with rethinking the way Americans value the food that’s left in the field: produce that’s perfectly delicious and nutritious, even if it’s a millimeter too small.
@theplanetharvest
(Full article, link in bio) | Posted on 20/Sep/2025 04:20:45
