By Claire Leibowitz, EIC
All produce can be eaten year-round, but is it really good year-round? Tomatoes in March are mushy and dull. Strawberries are hard and bitter after August. It’s impossible to find a peach in a grocery store in the winter. At the end of the day, the practice of produce consumption is not only about how you eat it, but when you eat it.
Eating seasonal produce not only takes advantage of the best flavors of the fruit or vegetable, but also of its nutrients, costs, and environmental impact. The fresher the produce, the healthier it is, as you’re eating it closest to its harvest. Instead of traveling across the country to get to grocery store shelves and plates, local and seasonal produce takes advantage of the environment and is the freshest it can be. There are many other benefits, too, however, to eat with the seasons.
Nutritional Value
Produce loses its nutritional value over time. When purchased off-season, it usually implies that the product was picked and harvested weeks or even months prior to its shelf date, with less-than-optimal nutrient content. In-season produce is high in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. These benefits fade as time goes on.
Nature helps to support what the body needs during the different seasons. In the summer, cravings include lighter, fresher foods, like stone fruits, which are high in carotenoids and beta-carotene. These help us to provide energy and protect the body from sun damage. However, in the winter, cravings include heartier foods, like stews, that help to warm the body. Citrus fruits also ripen in the winter and are high in Vitamin C, which helps to boost the immune system and fight against the colder months’ cold and flu season.
Taste
Similar to nutritional value, produce often tastes better when recently harvested. Oftentimes when fruits and vegetables are picked in the off season, they are transported prematurely before hitting peak ripeness because it’s assumed they will finish the process in-transit. When in transportation, produce is also refrigerated to prevent spoilage. However, the chilling process reduces flavor. The more time that passes between harvest to the plate, the more the vitamins and minerals deplete, therefore depleting the taste. Produce tastes so great when it is ripe and fresh because of the qualities that give it nutritional value, too.
Cost
Buying produce that is in-season is better not only for the local economy, but also for the wallet. Because there is no need to store or transport local, fresh produce across the country, there are no costs for traveling or storage. Supporting farmers markets and local stores in their year-round produce production helps aid local economies, too. The farmers are able to sustain themselves and harvest more food at the right time, and the cycle repeats itself. When in season, produce is more abundant, too, which lowers the cost and demand for it, further reducing the price.
Environmental Impact
In transporting fruits and vegetables around the country, the trucks and planes require lots of gas and oil, which also emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. Shopping locally reduces waste into the atmosphere by supporting the local community and reducing the time and effort it takes to get produce on the table. Additionally, shopping locally reduces the demand for out-of-season produce and therefore the carbon emissions of storing and refrigerating the product, too. Further, plants grown in-season require fewer pesticides and herbicides because they are naturally stronger and resistant to pests and disease.
March’s Seasonal Produce
Winter is the best time for citrus, and March is no exception. Lemons, pomelos, limes, grapefruits, mandarins, kumquats, and tangerines are at their peak right now. Additionally, winter is the season of fruit vegetables, like radish, carrots, turnip, beets and potatoes. In a similar category, bulb vegetables like fennel, artichokes, cauliflower, and broccoli are in-season this month. Greens like spinach, cabbage, chard, chicory, radicchio, and arugula are good, too.
While it is better to eat produce in-season, fruits and vegetables are always worth eating and incorporating into the diet. The amount of degradation in terms of nutrients is not so severe that it becomes dangerous to eat an out-of-season item. For the best flavor, health benefits, and environmental support, go for the in-season options when possible.
