There are no doubts about the many benefits of getting plenty of fruits and vegetables in your daily diet. They can be rich in vitamins, minerals and macronutrients. Produce can be high in fiber, antioxidants and more.
But if you’re not smart and savvy about where, when and how to buy products, you can easily spend an arm and a leg on items that go bad or were never great to begin with.
You already know how to best store your products. Now go one step ahead and learn how to buy the best fruits and vegetables.
Buy seasonally
One of the best ways to get the tastiest and most nutrient-dense produce is to stay on top of what’s in season. If it’s in your era, it’s more likely to be local and didn’t have to travel halfway around the world to get to you. This tactic has the added benefit of having a smaller carbon footprint also.
What is seasonal can vary greatly depending on where in the world you live, but there are many resources for identifying seasonal produce based on location, such as Seasonal Food Guide. In general, for North America, there are some basic rules of thumb.
In her book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, author Barbara Kingsolver refers to what she calls the vegeannual. This is a fantastic vegetable plant that would first produce leaves in early spring (like spinach, kale and collard greens) and then flower heads in late spring (like cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower). In summer, tender young fruits such as peas and cucumbers gave way to green beans, peppers and tomatoes. Later in the summer, it would produce larger tomatoes and peppers, plus eggplant. You will then see larger hard-shelled fruits such as melons, pumpkins and winter squash until early fall. And finally, late fall would bring root crops.
Although this is a simplified image, it is a useful image to use when trying to remember what is in season.
Also, check this out seasonal production guidewhich includes recipes.
Shop local
There are many benefits of farmers markets. Depending on where you live and the market, it’s a great place to find local and organic food. Keep in mind that not all farmers markets require the food to be organic or even locally grown. It’s always worth asking or checking for signage.
It’s also a great way to meet your local farmers and build relationships with them. Farmers really appreciate the support their consumers give.
Because you cut out the middleman, produce purchased at a farmers market can also be cheaper and fresher, sometimes picked earlier the same day.
If you’re interested in CSA (consumer supported agriculture) farming, farmers markets are a way to sample fruits and vegetables from a farm before you commit.
CSAs are boxes of local foods such as produce that are picked up or delivered weekly or monthly directly from the farms where they are grown. Most CSAs don’t let you pick what’s in your box. And while some people may not enjoy this, it can be a fun way to try foods you don’t normally cook yourself. And you can be sure it’s fresh.
Some CSAs require you to choose your foods from the farmers’ selections, but many farmers will set aside their best produce for their loyal CSA customers.
If you’ve never tried a CSA but eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, it can be a great option and is definitely the best way to support farmers.
Even in your grocery stores and supermarkets these days you can often find local produce labeled as such.
Buy Mass Production to save money
For better or worse, buying anything in bulk saves you money in the long run. But only if this big market doesn’t go to waste.
Whether you bulk buy from a chain warehouse, when you see a sale at your grocery store, or at the farmer’s market at the end of a season, it’s very important to have a plan whether it’s money and food down the drain. Or composted at best.
What to do with mass production?
Consider freezing, canning, fermenting or drying as ways to preserve food to last.
Freezing will not work for all products, but depending on the water content, it can work great for some products. They can then be thawed before use or used frozen for smoothies and freezing should not damage the nutrients. Ready-made soups and sauces also freeze well.
Canning often requires the addition of other ingredients such as sugar, pectin and/or vinegar and can damage certain nutrients. But canned goods last indefinitely. It can be a time-consuming process, but it offers many different options, including pickles, jams and sauces.
Fermentation is one of the few food-saving steps that will actually nutritionally enhance produce with produce probiotics. The hands-on time required is minimal, but it can take days or weeks for the finished product. This may include sauerkrautkimchi, preserved lemons or pickles.
Who doesn’t love dried fruit? Unfortunately, many store-bought dried fruits contain sulfites and/or sugar. Drying can be a delicious and easy way to make your fruit last. And did you know that many vegetables can also be dried? Carrots, mushrooms, herbs, tomatoes and potatoes dry well for later use in soups, sauces, dips and more. And while Most nutrients are generally unaffected by low drying temperatures, you lose water content. Despite all the fancy techniques out there, most ovens can dry food well on their lowest setting and with the door ajar in some cases.
Secrets to buying the best product
One of the best ways to ensure that you get vegetables and fruits that you will actually eat and enjoy without wasting them is to know what to look for when shopping.
This doesn’t always mean buying the nicest products. There is a lot of information out there showing the amount of food waste produced in the United States. But for starters, 38% of all food goes uneaten or even unsold, and 92 billion pounds of food is wasted every year.
While there are several reasons for this, a major one is that imperfect crops are thrown away without ever reaching stores.
Food doesn’t have to be pretty or perfect to be delicious and nutritious. Think about what you use the food for and when you might eat it. If you’re using bananas for smoothies, banana bread, or baby food, a super ripe piece with brown spots might be the perfect choice.
You can even get deals at some grocery stores and markets on products that will only last for a few more days. As long as you plan to use them in that time frame, this can work well for your meal planning and your wallet.
How to choose the best ripe product
Know the difference in fruit between soft spots that may indicate overripe or squishy spots and spots that may be darker due to higher natural sugar content. Likewise, in melons The veins may actually indicate that it is sweeter.
Use all your senses when shopping. Sweet smells from the fruit often indicate that the fruit is ripe. Heaviness in melons that also hint at sweet flesh. It helps to know that Some species will continue to ripen once harvested (such as avocados, pits, bananas, pears, plums and tomatoes) while others do not (such as apples, berries, citrus fruits and pineapple).
Vegetables can be a little more difficult, as the aroma does not help. But there are still plenty of clues to look for.
In general, firm and taut skin is a sign of freshness. Broccoli buds should be relatively firm without blooming or browning. The skin of the potato should not have a green color, which indicates that they were stored improperly and contain high levels of solanine.
Avoid vegetables that start to turn slimy, such as lettuce, mushrooms or asparagus.
Whether it’s for holistic nutrition therapy clients or your own home, knowing the best ways to get the best fruits and vegetables can save money, increase nutrient density, reduce waste, and even build community.
What to make with this abundance of beautiful products? This depends on YOU!
Piqued your curiosity about healthy eating? Want to delve deeper and explore career opportunities around nutrition?
The Nutritional Therapy Institute offers weekly webinars to learn about programs, courses, tuition and more. Book a place on the next webinar to find out if a career in nutrition is right for you.
About the Author: Maya Strausberg earned her Master Nutrition Therapist certification from NTI before starting her private nutrition therapy practice. She now offers writing and editing services to nutritionists and other health professionals around the world through her business, Family Tree Nutrition.
Images: Photo by EllAnne Preble on Unsplash. Photo by Scott Warman on Unsplash. Image by PeterG63 from Pixabay
