Sainsbury’s has unveiled the UK’s first ‘vegetable butcher’ in its Wandsworth superstore, South-West London.
The new service aims to shows customers how to incorporate vegetables into everyday meals and is working with vegetable expert and artist Amber Locke. Sainsbury’s is opening the veg counter to consumers on a trial basis.
“I’ve been trying to use vegetables in an exciting and inspiring way for years, but I know it’s new for a lot of people who are used to the traditional ways of cutting up and cooking courgettes, carrots and broccoli,” she said. “I have a passion for showing people how fun and delicious vegetables can be and, more importantly, how you can avoid wasting parts of them that may seem unusable.”
Vegetables are becoming more central to British eating, with 68 per cent of households now enjoying at least one vegetarian meal a week – even if they are meat eaters. Sainsbury’s has seen a surge in vegetable sales, with avocado (147 per cent), asparagus spears (118 per cent), broccoli (40 per cent), courgettes (30 per cent) and bunched beetroot (25 per cent) showing the largest growth.