Velzenbeek – In Vlezenbeek, Waste Warriors and Thomas Schiltz are set to harvest 70,000 kg of pears from a family orchard and convert them into juice before New Year’s Eve to combat food waste.
According to VRT News, the family, which inherited the 3-hectare orchard from their grandparents, is unable to harvest the ripe pears as the company previously hired for maintenance has ceased operations. Without assistance, they risk losing the entire harvest, leading to significant waste.
How Waste Warriors Aim to Rescue 70,000 Kilograms of Pears in Vlezenbeek
In response to the situation, the family has enlisted the help of Waste Warriors, an organization dedicated to rescuing surplus fruits and vegetables. Thomas Schiltz emphasized the urgency of picking the pears swiftly to ensure they can be transformed into pear juice.
Since its inception in early 2025, Waste Warriors has successfully saved 25,000 kilograms of produce that would otherwise have been discarded. The organization repurposes this food into longer-lasting products including soups, sauces, juices, jams, and cookies.
“We also want to do the same with the pears from Vlezenbeek. We’d like to make pear juice from them. That has a longer shelf life than the fruit itself, and we want to sell it on New Year’s Eve,” Schiltz stated.
To execute the plan, Waste Warriors will convene on Monday, August 9, 2025, to strategize the harvesting. They will decide whether to hire pickers or organize a “pick-your-own” event, allowing community members to gather pears, retain some for themselves, and donate the remainder for juice production.
Established in Belgium in 2025, Waste Warriors focuses on saving fruits and vegetables deemed unattractive or imperfect in size. The organization collects these items and repurposes them into products such as juice, soup, and jam, while also supplying food banks to assist the local community. Plans for expansion include increasing product sales to further support their mission.
, reports 24brussels.
