Valuable food

Don’t let your fruit spoil!

Local fruit is too valuable to simply let it spoil. The fruit exchange will once again bring supply and demand together this year.(Bild: Mathis Fotografie)

The Vorarlberg Fruit Exchange is once again saving valuable food this year. A digital map will make it easier to match supply and demand. 

Summer is just reaching its peak and the harvest season will soon begin. However, not all of the orchards in the region have been picked, and in many places the ripe apples, pears and berries are in danger of spoiling.

Fruit for personal use
Vorarlberg's fruit and horticultural associations began fighting this waste of valuable regional food years ago and launched the so-called "fruit exchange". The concept is very simple: anyone who has too much fruit for their own use or is no longer able to harvest it can register with the local OGV for the "fruit exchange". Conversely, anyone who needs fresh fruit can also register there - for example to press their own juices or make jam.

The service is particularly popular with young families who do not have their own growing facilities. The initiators have developed an interactive map so that supply and demand can be easily matched. This provides information about the meadows and gardens where apples and pears, berries, nuts or plums can be collected by appointment. Ideally, of course, you should pick the fruit yourself. This is a particular benefit for all those who are no longer able to collect their trees and bushes themselves.

"I would like to thank all participating fruit and horticultural associations, who provide valuable voluntary assistance in the spirit of mediation and recycling. In this way, the OGV is making a valuable contribution to the fight against food spoilage," emphasizes Markus Amann, Chairman of the Association for Fruit and Garden Culture.