308: What difference would it make if we all ate seasonal food?
Should we all be considering switching to a diet made up of seasonal food? It's a big question, and the impact could be huge too. How would it affect the food system? What difference would it make to the planet? In theory, only eating foods that are produced in your region at certain times of the year should mean fewer carbon emissions and less waste. But how big an impact would it really have? How likely is it that such a big change can be affected? And would it really benefit all of us? Our guest in this episode of the podcast is the food entrepreneur, Emilie Vanpoperinghe. Emilie is co-founder of Oddbox, a company that delivers thousands of boxes of in-season fruit and vegetables every week as part of its fight to make the world more sustainable. Oddbox has one of the clearest tag-lines around: Wonky Fruit & Veg | Deliciously Odd & Delivered to Your Door. Listen to the full episode to find out more about Emilie and Oddbox, why she believes switching to a seasonal diet could have a dramatic impact on the environment, and how the idea of seasonal eating fits, or otherwise, with the cost of living crisis. Emilie Vanpoperinghe, Co-founder, Oddbox Oddbox is a sustainable fruit and veg box tackling food waste. Oddbox rescues delicious fresh fruit and veg which is deemed ‘too big’, ‘too ugly’, the ‘wrong’ colour, or ‘too many’ from going to waste. A supply-led model, Oddbox partners with growers throughout the UK to box up and deliver this ‘too odd’ or ‘too many’ produce to a food waste fighting community across the UK. With every box its community reduces food waste, saves CO2 and water. Since its inception in 2016, the business has distributed over 5 million boxes, with its community rescuing a combined 30,000 tonnes of fresh fruit and veg. Emilie has over 15 years’ project and team management experience in Fortune 500 companies (3M and BT) across the globe. She was previously Director of Finance & Operations for Girl Effect, an international NGO set up by the Nike Foundation, working in developing countries to empower adolescent girls to reach their potential. Before that, she worked close to 10 years in finance in the corporate sector in France, India and the UK. Emilie is originally from northern France and has been in the UK for the past 10 years. Her grandparents were potato farmers and so she knows what it takes to grow fresh produce.