How To Keep Your Fruits and Vegetable Fresh (Infographic)

Many of us would like to cut down on food waste, but if your fruit is forever turning moldy and vegetables going limp it’s hard to stick to good intentions. In an effort to minimize household waste and save money, Blinds Hut looked for ways to store fruits and vegetables to make them last as long as possible to minimize food waste.

Edible waste costs billions of dollars a year. Half of all food waste takes place at home. Twenty-five percent of the world’s fresh water supply is used to grow food that is never eaten, according to the United Nations. At the current rate, an additional 2.3 billion people will be on the planet by 2050 – which will require a 60-70 percent increase in global food production.

The list of produce that should go in the fridge, might surprise you. While you might usually put your apples in the fruit bowl, they should go in the fridge, along with oranges, plums andmandarins. Meanwhile onions, potatoes and garlic should also go in thefridge and not the storage cupboard. 

For instance, fruits and vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, apricots, and cherries are best stored in the fridge at 0° to 2°C. Celery can last as long as eight weeks if kept in the fridge. Root vegetables such as parsnips lasting as long as 26 weeks if you keep them in the coolest part of the fridge at 0°C.  This means they should go in the coldest parts, which tends to be at the bottom, usually in the drawers, and towards the back of shelves close to the cooling element. Those that can take a temperature of 5°C and above such as asparagus and potatoes, could live on a higher shelf.

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Hardy sweet potatoes can last as long as 30 weeks, but unlike regular potatoes, theyshould be kept in a cool, dark environment rather than the fridge to ensurethey go the distance. For produce that should be kept outside of the fridge,those that can stay in a cool place at 13°C, such as cranberries andgrapefruit, can be kept in a kitchen.

Produce that needs a slightly cooler temperature of 10 degrees or lower, like aubergines and avocados, is ideally kept in somewhere that is a little more separate from the main warmth of the house such as a utility room or garage.

Bananas can last as long as four weeks if you keep them in a cool spot, while coconuts can stay good for an impressive eight weeks in the fridge. Meanwhile, citrus fruits such as lemons and grapefruits have an impressive shelf life of 26 weeks and eight weeks respectively if kept in a cool place.

You can make some produce such as potatoes, carrots, ginger and parsnips last as long as 26 weeks by keeping them in the fridge. Other fruits with an impressive shelf life include grapefruits and lemons, which can last as long as 26 weeks in a cool place, and oranges, which can stay fresh in the fridge up to 12 weeks.

Infographics by Blinds Hut

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