This Supermarket Chain Is Fighting Food Waste By Selling Green Satsumas

Due to Spain's unusually warm weather this year, its satsuma crop (also known as mandarins) didn't turn its usual orange hue. Instead, the easy-to-peel fruits remained green, resembling limes, according to The Guardian. United Kingdom-based supermarket chain Tesco is selling them anyway — they taste great.

Despite their outward appearance, the fruits are totally orange and ripe on the inside. Normally, ripe satsumas would turn from green to orange during the cool nights. But because of the rising temperatures in Spain, where satsumas are harvested, the skins didn't get a chance to go orange.

Instead of tossing them because of their appearances, Tesco is selling the satsumas and even extending their shelf life two days. The chain announced last month that it'll make efforts to help in the fight against food waste by loosening its quality standards. That's not to say Tesco sells lower-quality produce, but produce that may not be perfectly shaped or colored.

The Guardian reports that some growers are using ripening rooms to get the satsumas to turn orange, but this has results in some spoiled batches.

To learn more about the state of food waste and the efforts against it, watch WASTED! The Story of Food Waste. The documentary is now available on iTunes and On Demand.