The Importance (and Reality) of Seasonal Eating

If you’ve ever tasted a freshly picked tomato, or pepper, or apple, chances are you’re a rather picky eater. In the best possible way that is. You know what food should taste like. Believe it or not, it is not trendy or hip in any way either but returning to habits that once used to be the norm. People ate what was available when was available.

Whether you believe in New Year’s resolutions or not, here’s one that you adopt: Eat local and in season. Now you may ask how realistic is that, and what if no one buys anything grown responsibly on a farm in Mexico or South America, isn’t that going to affect some hard-working people?

The best answer is: everything in moderation. Opt for mostly local and in season, and keep the rest to a need-to basis. If you buys ‘treats’ such as tropical fruit, opt for organic and as close to where you are as possible. That ensure support for local farms (their environment will be less invaded by chemicals) and also a smaller carbon footprint that is usually associated with transporting goods from another corner of the world.

Where to start? Visit the local farmer’s market and ask what grows and when. Also, guidelines such as the ones you can read about in books like EatingWell in Season: The Farmers’ Market Cookbook by Jessie Price (Countryman Press 2009) will expand your horizon and soon you can find a balance.

Why eat seasonally?

• When you eat what’s available in your area (extend it say a couple of hundred miles) you are guaranteed to have access to fresh, nutrient-rich produce and fruit. It is that simple: if picked the morning of the market or delivery, it is picked at its ripeness peak. Yes it will be short-lived and you’ll have to use it within a week or less, but it will be tasty and most importantly, it’ll provide your body with the best cocktail of goodness money can bring.
• When you eat in season there is be no large scale transportation necessary to bring the food in, hence the environmental footprint is low too. When food travels from further away not only does it comes with various chemicals or irradiation meant to prevent spoiling or fungal growth but it also leaves a trail of polluting chemicals behind it, as a result of being hauled from far away.
• When you eat what’s in season (or healthy preserves or frozen goods you prepared over the summer or fall) you are bound to give everything a fair chance. Root vegetables such as yams, carrots and beets to name just a few are a great source of energy, antioxidants and fiber. Kale is a deep-green and equally deeply nutritious leafy vegetable that loves cold weather. You will likely include more starchy vegetables and meat-based stews in your diet. With a bit of creativity and a farmer’s market-inspired cookbook you will be able to come up with colorful and nutritional dishes.

As always, eating with the seasons will not keep you in your best shape unless you add daily physical activity to it. Rain, shine, or snow, make sure you get out and get a healthy dose of aerobic exercise every day during winter. A blog post about physical activity during winter months will be posted next week.

Happy local, seasonal, colorful eating! And a Happy New Year!