Author: admin

Contact

Ólafur Reykdal

Project Manager

olafur.reykdal@matis.is

Awareness has been raised about the importance of reducing the use of single-use packaging, and this is especially true for the use of plastic.

The consumer market has recently called for environmentally friendly packaging, and there is a loud demand for less use of plastic in the vegetable value chain. Producers and sellers are faced with the fact that using plastic is the easiest way to reduce the moisture loss of vegetables and thus preserve their quality and shelf life. The plastic is also used to differentiate products and to arrange pieces together in sales units.

Matís' staff has worked on a project aimed at highlighting the facts about vegetable packaging. Vegetables as a living tissue, the properties of the various packaging materials and environmental effects, especially the harmful effects of chemicals in plastic, were discussed.

You can read about all this and more in Matís's report:

• Chapter 10, for example, provides advice on packing vegetables.
• Appendix 3 contains detailed tables of ideal storage conditions for vegetables, fruits and spices.

Contact

Ólafur Reykdal

Project Manager

olafur.reykdal@matis.is

At Matís, numerous projects have been carried out aimed at promoting knowledge about vegetables for the benefit of the public, the food industry and other interested parties. Matís' subjects cover a large part of the value chain of vegetables, from harvest all the way to the consumer's table. Domestic vegetable production only contributes more than 40% of all the vegetables consumed in Iceland. Therefore, the country's food security could be increased by increasing vegetable production.

There are more reasons to focus on vegetables. Vegetables have a lot of health value and this is confirmed in the new Nordic nutritional recommendations that you can see here and here. Increased consumption of vegetables can reduce the risk of stomach and lung cancers and also cardiovascular diseases. It is recommended to consume 500-800 grams of vegetables, fruits and berries daily. This is much more than most Icelanders currently consume National dietary survey. It is best to consume a wide variety of these foods and limit the consumption of processed foods with added sugar. Vegetables, fruits and berries are important sources of nutrients such as fiber and vitamins C, E and K along with folate.

It is worth noting that Matís employees are currently working on a new vegetable website with support from the Horticulture Development Fund. The online book will be available on Matís' website and will deal specifically with results from Matís' projects. Methods to maximize the quality and shelf life of vegetables, measures to reduce their waste, packaging instructions, nutritional value and processing of valuable substances from by-products of vegetable production can be mentioned. These points will be explained in an accessible way and there will be links to the detailed discussion and the reports themselves. It is hoped that this initiative will increase interest in vegetables and contribute to their increased consumption. An example of Matís' project on vegetables can be seen here.

Contact

Jónas Rúnar Viðarsson

Director of Business and Development

jonas@matis.is

"We need to realize that we are facing big challenges," says Jónas Viðarsson in an interview on Rásar 2's Morgunútvarp and mentions the growing protein shortage in the world in that context. "This relates to both food safety and food safety, i.e. that we both have enough and wholesome food for us into the future. This is a big challenge for the world as a whole and part of what we at Matís are working on every day."

He points out that there are many projects underway in Iceland aimed at creating more food. "We in Iceland can teach the world a lot in relation to full utilization, especially of fish," says Jónas, but adds that Icelandic consumers have a rather large carbon footprint compared to other nations.

Jónas points out that Matís is at the forefront of research and development of alternative proteins in Europe. "It is one of the things that we see will be part of the solutions, ie to come in with a new source of protein." In that context, he mentions research on microalgae, kelp, bacteria or protozoa, and then insects.

The interview can be accessed in its entirety here (starts at minute 33:50).

Salvör Jónsdóttir was recently elected the new chairman of Matís. She succeeds Hákon Stefánsson, who has held the position since 2019.

Salvör completed his master's degree in planning at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has worked in planning for decades. Among other things, she has worked in the organization of the food system in the United States and for years was the director of the planning department at the City of Reykjavík. In addition, she has held the position of assistant professor at HR. Salvör is currently working on her doctoral research at the Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences of the University of Iceland, where she examines aspects of the natural and social sciences with the aim of improving production systems in agriculture with regard to sustainable development. In the study, attention is paid to food security in Iceland.

We thank Hákon Stefánsson for a job well done and extend a warm welcome to Salvár Jónsdóttir.

On Tuesday, June 6, Matís' successful seminar on the future of food production in Iceland took place in Harpa's Norðurlósasal. A recording of the seminar is now available below.

Photographs: Anton Brink