A restaurant menu focused on seasonal produce is now super cool, but do you know why it’s important to eat seasonally?
Quite simply, when you eat locally and seasonally you know you are eating the freshest, most abundantly available produce. It is better for everyone – you get the tastiest vegetables and fruits, the local farmers benefits and food miles (the distance our food has to travel from the farm to your fork) decrease so you get to save the environment, too. Another unexpected benefit is to reconnect to nature’s seasonal cycle. If you have children, this is especially important as it teaches that food does grow at specific times, a hard concept to grasp when imports from all over the world ensure that the supermarket shelves look the same practically every week of the year.
If you’re wondering when you should start, the answer is now. A BBC Good Food magazine survey showed we’re not as good as we think at figuring out what is in season and when. Of the 2000 people asked, 86% claimed it was important to shop seasonally, 78% said they were doing it – and yet only 5% could say when blackberries were at their best.*
I want to help make this the year that you can embrace this concept.
Where to buy seasonally?
Farmers’ markets are a great place to find local seasonal vegetables and fruits. Make it your mission this month to find out what’s in season near you. Ask friends and family, and if you are feeling confident, ask the question on your Facebook page to get the quickest response.
- Failing that, you can try this resource (if you live in the UK) to find a place near you: https://findlocalproduce.co.uk
- For Spain, this resource may help: The Spanish Government provides the Seasonal Produce Calendar.
- For Switzerland: My Switzerland magazine listed 11 of the most beautiful Farmer’s Markets to visit. Swiss Farmers has a great seasonal produce calendar, you check by season or what is currently in season.
Having someone else do the hard work and just bring you the goodies is also an option. If you’ve never considered getting an organic vegetable/fruit box, it can be an amazing experience or a way to get yourself started. It’ll teach you super fast what is in season and when you will get some of the best produce available in your area and delivered to your door, and it will inspire you to start cooking. Check the important resources section for the box options for Spain, UK, and Switzerland.
* Other sources which mention the results of the BBC survey is a 10-year-old article from the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2014/aug/12/seasonal-eating-vegetables-uk-does-it-matter
