Page 38 - EarthHeroes

Food waste also means wasted time for the farmers who have worked hard to grow it, as well as the loss of much-needed income. Most farmers feel frustrated that customers are ‘eating with their eyes’, by always wanting fruit and vegetables to be big and perfect in appearance, regardless of flavour. In reality, the smaller, less attractive produce is often tastier.
Isabel was born in 1982 and grew up in a town on the outskirts of Lisbon, Portugal’s capital city, where she
lived with her parents and brother. She was an active child who loved playing out in the street with her friends but found it hard to sit still in class. Despite this, she loved maths and science and always got high grades. Isabel wanted
to do something to make a better world, so she went to university to study to become an environmental engineer – someone who works to protect the environment by dealing with issues related to air, water, soil and waste.
After finishing her studies, Isabel got a job in Barcelona, Spain. It was here
in 2012 that she saw a TV programme one day about the problem of food waste worldwide. At home that Christmas, she asked her uncle, who was a farmer, whether this affected his farm. She was shocked when he told her that he had thrown away 40 per cent of his crop of pears that year because they were considered too small by the supermarkets and according to European government guidelines. Isabel was outraged. She thought the rules were stupid. What if she had been a fruit? Then she would have been thrown away because she was short!
Isabel returned to her job in Barcelona thinking about what her uncle had said. Surely there were people like her who chose their food by taste and not by looks? Then she had an idea. She would find a way of bringing the unwanted fruit and vegetables directly to the people who would really appreciate them. She decided to start a business to sell the produce and call it Fruta Feia – ‘Ugly Fruit’ – so that people knew straight away what she was trying to do.
It was soon afterwards that she saw an advert for a competition to find ideas that would benefit Portugal. The winners would be given money to help make their idea a reality. Isabel filled out the form and sent in her proposal for Fruta Feia. In June 2013, she was stunned when she won second prize and 15,000€.
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