Seasonal Eating: more than meets the eye
By now you’ve probably heard the term ‘seasonal eating’ or heard of people who practice it by eating with the seasons. In fact, it was once the only way we could eat. Before international import and export of fruit and veg began, heck, even before interstate import of fruit and veg was possible…
If you haven't heard about seasonal eating, I’ll explain it a little bit more for you!
Eating seasonally means to consume produce that normally grows during that time of year, or season. This is usually done using minimal or no growing aids, contaminants to extend shelf life or having to import produce in from another place (or even country).
Now, don’t get me wrong… We are so lucky to be able to access fruit and veg from all over the world at almost any time of year - while this is a fantastic privilege, I’m a big believer in still eating 80/20 seasonal produce for a plethora of reasons… A few of the main ones are as listed below:
NOT ONLY GOOD FOR OUR WALLETS, BUT OUR MIND AND BODY TOO.
It’s cost effective: Next time you’re in the grocery store, have a look at the ‘in-season’ produce… Not only is it often cheaper than produce that’s out of season, but it also looks better (and tastes like it should). We’ve all seen the shrivelled up berries during winter that cost an arm, leg and a kidney - and not to mention, they’re usually tasteless or even bitter… definitely not worth giving that kidney up.
Supports our bodies nutritional needs, as well as our bodies innate cleansing and healing abilities. Nature is a great source of medicine and if you look at the produce that she produces during particular seasons, you’ll soon see that nature just wants to work with us - we might as well let her. Vitamin C containing citrus in winter, to boost immunity. Stone fruit in summer, which contains high amounts of the antioxidant, beta-carotene, helping our body protect itself against sun exposure (although, sunscreen is still VERY important). Green leafy veg in spring to help cleanse and detoxify our bodies after winter… She’s got a diabolical plan to keep us healthy. Why would we fight that?!
Tastes better and has its full nutritional content. Seasonal fruit and veg are picked at their peak - meaning they have full flavour and contain all those nutrients needed for our bodies to work at their absolute best. Being picked at their prime and being nutritionally loaded, helps to keep us at our physical prime. Not to mention, they avoid harmful toxins which are often used to help extend shelf life of out-of-season veg. These chemicals actually reduce the small amount of nutritional content that these veg have to start with. Not to mention the chemicals used can also wreck havoc on our health and body as many of these “shelf life extenders” are actually called hormone and endocrine disruptors and do just that (disrupt) within our bodies. This is why it’s always important to wash your fruit and veg when getting them home, and go organic where possible.
Finally, a lot of holistic practitioners, much like myself believe that eating seasonally is also great for inducing a harmonious living state. It allows us to get in touch with nature and our natural rhythms and cycles. This can also be known as grounding.
So there you have it, there are many benefits to seasonal eating - it’s almost silly not to do it…
You can be sure you’re buying seasonal by heading to your local farmers markets or growers' stalls. This way you’re not only getting fresh grown produce, but you’re supporting small businesses too - and without all the plastic.
Photo by Isabella and Louisa Fischer on Unsplash