Lidl will be stacking aisles with “ugly” fruit and veg to prevent the wonky, drought hit produce from going to waste.
The supermarket has stepped in to save mis-shapen carrots, potatoes and onions from being dumped as they are smaller and less pleasing to the eye than usual.
Shoppers can expect to see an assortment of shapes and sizes instead of the uniform perfection they have come to expect in their fruit and veg.
Lidl has contacted suppliers with offers of help and the chain’s GB chief executive Ryan McDonnell is now urging other supermarkets to follow suit.
He said: “Farmers across the country are facing a big challenge this year due to the extreme weather conditions experienced over the summer months.
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“Whilst the crop coming out may look and feel a bit different to what we’re all used to, it’s still the same great British quality.
“We therefore want to show support for our suppliers by working with them to find solutions to help.”
And today, Waitrose joined the campaign to prevent wonky veg from being dumped because it looks odd.
It is boosting its A Little Less Perfect range with unshapely potatoes, carrots, strawberries, apples, pears and peppers.
And it is planning to snap up further supplies of weird looking produce to use in its soups, smoothies and ready meals.
Paul Bidwell, fresh produce buyer at Waitrose, said: “We constantly look at ways we can support our farmers through challenging conditions and often that means altering our specifications.
“Many of our UK suppliers have managed through the drought thanks to back up water supplies from reservoirs or rain water capture systems so we’ve focused our efforts on those that need the most help.
“What’s in store may look a bit different at times but it will always represent the same great quality, taste and high standards our customers are used to.”
The National Farmers Union (NFU) has urged families not to turn their noses up at shrunken and wonky fruit and veg.
Tom Bradshaw, the NFU’s deputy president said: “Consumers need to have a bit more flexibility because potatoes might be a bit smaller, onions might be a little bit smaller.
“And that’s still the case of everyone just needing to pull together a little bit to accept that it’s not been a perfect time.”
He added broccoli and cauliflower was also being hit by the drought and said: “There isn’t anything which is not impacted if it’s grown in a field that isn’t irrigated.”
The NFU warned that a labour shortage could lead to £60 million worth of fruit and veg rotting in the fields with £22 million already wasted this year as a result of a staffing crisis.
Figures from the Met Office show southern England had the driest July since 1836 with just 10.5mm of rain - 17% of the month’s average.
Overall it was the driest month in the whole of England since 1935 with 23.1mm of rain - just 35% of the average rainfall for the month.
