Ugly fruit and vegetables that have grown just as nature intended will be back on supermarket shelves from today — and could be up to 40 per cent cheaper than their perfectly formed cousins.

In a triumph for curvy cucumbers, knobbly carrots and wizened cherries, the European Commission has abolished 20-year-old rules that discriminated against imperfect fresh produce.

In all, 36 types of fruit and vegetables can now be sold whatever their shape, size, lack of sheen or gnarled skin. Even garlic heads with cloves missing will make it on to the shelves and a string of onions no longer has to have 16 bulbs.

But the rules will not end the jokes about bendy bananas — the standards for the fruit are governed by a different set of European Union rules. One EU official said that bananas were supposed to be bendy, unlike cucumbers.

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Baby vegetables are already fashionable items and these are likely to become more popular — from today it is no longer illegal to sell a cauliflower less than 11cm in diameter, and carrots described as small no long have to weigh at least 8g.

The intention is to lower the price of fresh food and to cut red tape for growers and importers. Retailers estimate that prices for misshapen and blemished produce will be about 40 per cent lower. Families will find it easier to ensure that everyone has the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day.

The Grade 1 and Grade 2 classification system will, however, still apply to the ten products, including apples, tomatoes, strawberries, grapes and pears, that account for 75 per cent of the sales of fresh produce. Misshapen examples of these can be sold in the shops and will have to be labelled as for use in cooking rather than for eating fresh.

Jim Fitzpatrick, the Food and Farming Minister, said that people would have more choice if “they aren’t bothered by what shape their five-a-day comes in”, adding: “It also means that producers and suppliers won’t be stuck with as many leftovers, so there’ll be less food waste.”

In Britain the move will help all growers whether they follow organic or conventional production methods. Patrick Holden, the director of the Soil Association, which champions organic produce, was delighted. Three years ago his own organic carrots grown in the hills of West Wales were rejected by Sainsbury’s for being “too wonky”.

He said: “This will be a fantastic step, especially for organic growers. We are about inner quality, not outer appearance — that is our hallmark. Fresh, local and seasonal is better than a bland but cosmetically perfect piece of fruit or veg.”

The National Farmers’ Union said in a statement: “Farmers and growers work extremely hard to produce quality food but nature does not always comply with a perfectly rounded sprout and poker-straight carrot.

“It is good to hear that people will be given the chance to buy odd-shaped fruit and veg and see they taste just as good. It will help eliminate waste, which has to be good news for consumers and British growers.”

Old rules

- Class 1 cucumbers must be “practically straight” and their maximum bend must be at a gradient of no more than 1/10

- Carrots must not be forked (with more than one root). They must be smooth and regular. If they are less than 20mm (0.79ins), they must be called “early” carrots.

- A bunch of grapes must not weigh more than 1kg

- An onion can only be sold if two thirds is covered in skin

New rules

Fruit and vegetables that can be sold in any shape or size: apricots, artichokes, asparagus, aubergines, avocados, beans, Brussels sprouts, carrots cauliflowers, cherries, courgettes, cucumbers, mushrooms, garlic, hazelnuts, cabbage, leeks, melon, onions, peas, plums, celery, spinach, walnuts, watermelons, chicory.

Fruit that will continue to be graded (but can be sold in misshapen form for cooking): apples, citrus fruit, kiwi fruit, lettuces, peaches and nectarines, pears, strawberries, sweet peppers, table grapes and tomatoes.

Rule that hasn’t changed

- The bend of a banana must be “the thickness of a transverse section of the fruit between the lateral faces and the middle, perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, must be at a minimum of 27mm(1.06ins).

Source: European Commission

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