Budget supermarket giant Aldi has offered vital advice to banana buyers on how to prevent their fruit from turning brown or going mushy. The supermarket, which was once again crowned the cheapest in the UK in April, has previously put out guidance aimed at helping shoppers keep their food fresher for longer.
Expert Advice from Kate Hall
Aldi joined forces with food storage specialist Kate Hall to advise customers on the best ways to preserve various everyday staples, including milk, potatoes and bananas. This follows research by Aldi revealing that the average Brit wastes £387 worth of food every year. Meanwhile, seven in 10 admit they purchase food fully aware they'll probably end up throwing it away.
The Simple Freezing Method
For those buying bananas, Kate says there's a straightforward way to keep them lasting longer without browning or turning mushy. All you have to do is slice them up and pop them into one common kitchen appliance: the freezer.
Kate said: "Let's face it, we can't always make banana bread every time a bunch gets past its best. But if you can spare 30 seconds to peel, slice and freeze bananas, you can avoid them going to waste. Just spread them out on a lined tray before freezing so that they don't clump together, and then store them in a resealable freezer bag. These are perfect for making banana ice cream or chocolate peanut butter bites!"
You can use the same approach to save lots of other fruits and veggies too, for example, cucumbers can be sliced and frozen to be used instead of ice cubes, added to smoothies, or even blitzed into a refreshing sorbet.
Benefits of Freezing
She added: "Using your freezer is such a simple way to press pause on your food so it doesn't end up in the bin. Freezing food can help our budgets stretch further, and you can actually freeze a lot more than people realise. The trick is knowing the best way to freeze food and what to do with it after freezing."
Luke Emery, National Sustainability Director at Aldi UK, said: "At Aldi, we're committed to reducing food waste wherever we can across our supply chain, whether that be working with suppliers to cut down on waste, or marking down prices of items nearing their sell by date. Now we're on a mission to help shoppers minimise their food waste too, while getting even more value from their Aldi groceries at the same time. It seems simple, but the research shows that freezing items still isn't something many do - so we want to showcase just how easy that can be."
