Carried out by the University of Edinburgh, researchers found that more than a third of produce - equivalent to the carbon emissions of almost 400,000 cars - never reaches supermarket shelves because it is misshapen or the wrong size.
The study looked at food loss and waste within the European Economic Area, to discern how much food is discarded each year before reaching point of being sale.
Stephen Porter, from the School of GeoSciences, suggests “encouraging people to be less picky about how their fruit and vegetables look could go a long way to cutting waste, reducing the impact of food production on the climate, and easing the food supply chain.”
The University of Edinburgh added encouraging greater use of misshapen produce (chopped, processed, or sold to charities at discount) as well as raising awareness among consumers and moving towards ‘sustainable shopping’ could promote sales.
Professor David Reay added: “The scale of food that is wasted when it is perfectly safe to eat is shocking at a time when one-tenth of the world’s population is perpetually underfed.”