Healthy Living
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
5 Reasons to buy local produce
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Today, it is likely that you
can get all types of produce, all year long. In a sense we
have been spoiled. When you want
blueberries in February...no
problem...somewhere in the world, they are growing blueberries and
they can be shipped to your local grocery. Although we like
this convenience, there are many reasons to stick with locally
grown, in-season produce. Here's why:
- Taste: The fresher the produce, the better it
will taste. If a fruit or vegetable isn't in season, it
is shipped from across the country, or even worse, across the
world. To do so, farmers harvest their crops early and
refrigerate them so that they don't go bad during
shipping. As a result, they aren't ripe when picked and
don't always ripen to their full flavor as they would in their
natural growing environment. During chilling and shipping,
produce loses freshness and flavor with each step of the process:
when chilled, when transported and when held in warehouses prior to
distribution.
- Nutrition:
Vanishing flavor from fruits and vegetables also means vanishing
nutrition. As mentioned, when farmers ship to far off areas,
they harvest early. In doing so, the fruit or vegetable
doesn't have as many nutrients as it would have if it was
picked when it was fully grown and fully ripe. Further,
because of the transportation process, produce is irradiated to
kill germs and layered with preservatives, such as wax on
cucumbers.
- Variety: Eating produce that is in-season
means that you eat a wide variety of foods throughout the
year.
- Cost: Buying locally grown, in-season produce
means that the cost for that produce is lower. Why?
Because in season produce is abundant, making supply high.
- Environment: Eating locally grown, in-season
produce means that you are supporting the health of the
environment. Shipping from great distances
requires using tons of resources and expelling tons of
pollution.
A great resource for finding in-season produce, local to your
area is the Seasonal Ingredient Map at
Epicurious.com.
Do you buy local, in-season produce? Do you grow your own veggies or
fruit? Can you taste the difference in quality and
taste?
Related
Topics:
Related: wellness, vegetables, produce, nutrition, local food, grocery shopping, fruit, farmers market, diet
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Posted by simfelicity Thu Sep 3, 2009 6:55am PDT
me? i wanted to try some imported materials.....but the cost is way too expensive.....hope i could find a way to sort my budget...
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Posted by Ana Caterina Fri Sep 4, 2009 1:58am PDT
I hate, freakin' *hate* when someone lists environment as a reason for buying local. What if I don't care abour the damn environment? What if I really want those strawberries in the freakin' February? And what if the local produce is nasty and low quality where I live?
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Posted by Shivers Fri Sep 4, 2009 7:46am PDT
Ana Caterina - That's fine if you want to buy strawberries in February (in my opinion) especially if you have a craving for them. And if you don't want to buy locally because there's bad quality where you live, then obviously don't buy it. However, I don't understand why you wouldn't care about the environment at least a little bit? A lot of people these days are talking about it, so i can see how it might get on your nerves - but the truth is that we are wrecking our Earth and our future children and grandchildren deserve a good place to live rather than trying to clean up the mess we left for them. It's hard to be able to do everything environmentally friendly, but if you are conscious of your acts and do what you can that's all that matters and helps.
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Posted by Brett Blumenthal - Sheer Balance Fri Sep 4, 2009 8:37am PDT
Ana Caterina....Environment is one of five reasons listed. I am with Shivers...not sure why you wouldn't care at all...but, even if you don't...if you have the ability to buy local produce, there are a lot of other good reasons to do so.
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Posted by Magnolia_Doodle Fri Sep 4, 2009 9:18am PDT
Another great reason, that is not listed, is you are directly supporting the economics of your community and neighbors. And, if you want those strawberries in February, you can always buy them peak and freeze them.
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Posted by KarenF Sat Sep 5, 2009 2:59pm PDT
I'll agree that when possible locally grown, in season fruits and vegetables are the best and living in some places, such as California, ensure that you have access to a wide variety all year round. However, when it is not possible, you can check where your produce comes from - nearly all is labeled where it comes from and buy apples from Washington versus New Zealand.
Frozen produce is available all year round, and a lot is from US grown fields (again check labels). Frozen fruits and veggies are picked at their ripest so they still retain a high amount of nutrients. It's also fairly easy to find organic frozen produce.
Finally, I'll add that irradiated produce is labeled as such. It does not change the nutritional quality of the item and can destroy mircrobes such as salmonella that are responsible for food poisoning.
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Posted by JoKTM Sat Sep 5, 2009 4:48pm PDT
Most localy grown fruits and veggies are organic and support your local economy. I live in Dallas, TX so i go to local farmers markets to buy fruits and veggies. It is usualy cheaper to shop at the farmers markets than going to the grocery store.
There are fruits that do not grow in my area like oranges and pineapple but I can choose to buy the ones from South TX and not Florida. Its all about choices. Plus its fun going to the little farmers markets.
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Posted by JoKTM Sat Sep 5, 2009 4:51pm PDT
Your states agriculture website should have certefied farmers markets list and El Paso has a growers association.
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