Discover Benelux | Dutch Industry & Innovation | Made in the Netherlands
Making delicious products from leftovers TEXT: MICHIEL STOL | PHOTOS: POTVERDORIE!
Did you know that nearly a third of all the food that is being produced each year is thrown away? And that of all the mangos that are grown, only two per cent are consumed? A lot of the food is thrown away by supermarkets and wholesalers. When Charlotte Heine saw this happening at a supermarket in her hometown of Amsterdam, there was only one thing she could think: ‘Potverdorie!’ (‘By golly!’). “Of course, I already knew it was happening, but when I saw it with my own eyes, I couldn’t believe it,” says Heine of the time she witnessed an employee take out seemingly fine looking fruit to the back of the supermarket in 2015. The fruit was not rotten, but it no longer looked perfect. “When I asked if I could take it with me to make new products, I was referred to the store manager, who was very positive about the idea. From that moment on, we started to collect the fruit every week.” Along with a friend, Joep Weerts, Heine started to make jams and chutneys, using and combining the leftover fruits. 28 | Issue 54 | June 2018
“Potverdorie! started in our kitchen. Together we would come up with recipes for good, tasty products. We are not cooks by trade, we just like good food and new flavours,” smiles Heine. Soon afterwards, it was no longer just that one supermarket that donated fruit. “We started to look for more places where they throw away food, like markets and such. Then we boldly went to the Food Center Amsterdam, a wholesale market, and told them about Potverdorie!. They were very enthusiastic about the idea. Now we receive whole pallets of fruit,” reveals Heine. More than a year ago, they moved in with another sustainable food producer, in neighbouring Zaandam. “This a professional and certified kitchen, so the production is up to standards. We still make all the jams, chutneys, jelly and pickles ourselves – sometimes with the help of friends.”
ing to make some of the products more permanent because people like them so much. That is why we are talking with producers,” Heine explains. “When they harvest, a lot of the produce is discarded because it doesn’t have the right shape, size or colour, even though there is nothing wrong with the quality. It can still be used to create tasty, high quality products.” Potverdorie! products are sold at more than 50 delicatessens in and around Amsterdam and throughout the Netherlands. “Large caterers are finding us now, proving that people care as much as we do about wastage and want to help us grow, so that everyone can enjoy our products.” Heine concludes: “There is too much food wastage. We want to put a stop to that, and create delicious jams and chutneys in the process.” Potverdorie! - less waste, and a better taste.
The Potverdorie! product range varies, depending on the fruit that is donated. “It gives us the chance to come up with new recipes each week, but we are also look-
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