Bring on the Curvy Cucumbers

In a move celebrated by both farmers and consumers, the European Union lifted its ban on “misshapen” fruits and vegetables starting this month. That means “curvy cucumbers, curious carrots and bendy beans” — products previously deemed unfit for sale — can return to shelves, and shops can slash their prices.

Last December the European Union voted in favor of commission proposals to cancel specific marketing standards for 26 types of fruits and vegetables. The initiative is part of the Commission’s ongoing efforts to simplify E.U. rules. “It’s a concrete example of our drive to cut unnecessary red tape,” Mariann Fischer Boel, the E.U.’s Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, told reporters. “We simply don’t need to regulate this sort of thing at the E.U. level. In these days of high food prices and general economic difficulties, consumers should be able to choose from the widest range of products possible.”

Rules will remain in place for 10 types of fruits and vegetables, including apples, kiwis and nectarines. But Member States can for the first time allow shops to sell those products, as long as they’re labeled appropriately. “It makes no sense to throw perfectly good products away, just because they are the ‘wrong’ shape,” Boel said.