Why Eating Local is Better

What’s all the hype about?

There is no dearth of exotic fruits and vegetables in the market nowadays. Are you always one of those who gets excited seeing rows and rows of colourful fruits and vegetables like avocado, broccoli, dragon fruit, kiwis and so on, in the supermarket?

But, do you really think you are benefitting from these exotic goodies? Well, yes, you are! But not as much as you might like to believe.

So, lets find out, how and why we should root for local veggies and fruits and even grains, instead of making a bee-line for those passion fruits, zucchini and quinoa!

1. Local Food is More Fresh

There is definitely a difference between an avocado picked yesterday and avocados picked last week from the fields, washed, sealed in a packet and transported hundreds of miles away. Will there be a change in taste? Will there be a change in its nutrient value?

A resounding YES!!

Freshly picked produce is bursting with flavours and nutrients, so definitely it is healthier for you.

2. Local Food Promotes Variety

When the food is local and being produced near you, you will find a wide variety of them to choose from. For example, we can choose from Dussehri and Langda and Alphonso or Chausa, instead of just ‘mangoes!’ Hence, we get different tastes, textures and flavours in the same fruit or vegetable.

3. Local Food Is Safer for Consumption

Small scale farms usually don’t use harmful pesticides and fertilizers that have become standard in conventional farming practices. They also don’t generally use chemicals, preservatives and food additives or flavouring as their food doesn’t need to travel far. They don’t package their food in plastic or boxes. It is as fresh and pure as it can get!

6. Local Food Protects Us from Seasonal Illnesses

Nature automatically bestows us with foods needed to strengthen our immunity, depending on our climatic conditions. The nutrients required to fight local viruses and bacteria in a particular race and culture are readily available in the local fresh fruits and vegetables growing in that particular area. Our bodies might not register the antioxidants and vitamins that we consume with the exotic produce.

So, for a healthier diet, try and eat as much fresh and local produce as possible. If you like having exotic fruits, have one portion of it, and maybe, 2 portions of local fruits to maintain a balance. Don’t make exotic fruits and vegetables your only source of balanced meal.

Eat Fresh! Eat Healthy!