The fields and gardens are bursting with fresh food at the moment. Whether it's seasonal vegetables, fruits or grains - there's a great harvest, even in your neighbourhood. So why consume exotic foods when we have plenty here?
Thanks to globalisation, we can consume fruits, vegetables and other foods from all over the world every day. The ordinary consumer lives better than a few decades ago when the heavily wealthy did. Tropical fruits and exotic foods are constantly available, but "normal" fruits are also available all year round.
Out-of-season produce: environmental damage included
The supermarkets' wide range of products has its price. Because the sweet exotics travel halfway around the world. Even strawberries in winter are only possible thanks to a long supply chain. What is so tempting at first glance harms the environment through theCO2 emissions of the greenhouses and means of transport - and deprives us of the pleasure of looking forward to the seasons with their fresh fruits and vegetables.
The taste is also decidedly inadequate in products that are harvested and refrigerated while still unripe. Moreover, large-scale industrial cultivation involves the use of fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, which are by no means made fully clear to the end consumer everywhere. As a result, the products end up tasting nowhere near as good as a sun-warmed fruit from the region that lands on the market stall almost without any detours from the Tree or shrub.
Seasonal should always also be regional
However, it is not simply a matter of eating seasonally. Because somewhere in the world it is always warm in summer. Only those who buy from regional producers do good for themselves and the environment. Regionally grown and produced food covers only short distances. They can be harvested, offered and bought fresh, at the best possible time.
For customers, this means receiving a vegetable or fruit of optimum quality - just as if they had just harvested it from their own garden. It's not just the vitamins, nutrients and taste that outperform fruit from the supermarket that has traveled far and wide. Preservatives are also not necessary with regional produce.
More transparency for regional providers
If you buy at the weekly market or in a farm store, you can usually find out where your food comes from without much trouble. This shows how short the distances are within the region - and of course this also means that producers earn more because there are fewer middlemen involved in transportation and distribution.
Better nutrition thanks to regional products
When shopping within your own region, you learn to pay attention to the changing seasons. What's more, fresh produce also tastes best when freshly cooked. With produce from the region, you quickly develop a taste for cooking delicious, high-quality dishes. It doesn't have to be tedious, on the contrary, this way even those of us who are tired of cooking can get to know the joys of cooking. And the body will thank you with a greater sense of well-being and better overall health.
What's fresh from the region?
In Europe, too, you can cook seasonally in a variety of ways - and look forward to fresh produce from the surrounding countryside. This includes vegetables such as potatoes, tomatoes or courgettes, but also fruit. Seasonal tables can be found online. Local produce includes
- Potatoes: all year round
- Asparagus: April to June
- Strawberries: June to August
- Apples: July to May
- Tomatoes: June to October
- Grapes: September to November
- Pumpkins: October to November
- Chicory: November to April
You can grow many local products yourself. Fruit trees thrive even in small gardens and bear fruit after just a few years. Shrubs, such as currants, raspberries or blueberries, can also be cultivated in the garden, as can most vegetables. Incidentally, many "exotics" are also quite adaptable. The popular kiwis also grow in our latitudes. And if you don't have your own garden, you don't have to stay idle. With a raised bed, you can always harvest fresh herbs, radishes and cucumbers on your balcony! Even beginners can garden - and the results are impressive.
Regional is the trump card!
Regional food stands for a variety of advantages: transparent, short supply chains, often personal contact with producers, optimal ripening and harvesting times and good quality for the price. The change of seasonal products throughout the year brings variety to the kitchen and farmers benefit from higher demand - they can reinvest, develop their offerings and remain viable. Smaller businesses in particular, which often operate in an environmentally friendly way, can only survive thanks to demand in the region.
At NIKIN , we naturally focus on sustainable materials in the fashion industry and support tree planting projects worldwide. But we also want to motivate people to rethink their own lifestyle - especially when it comes to food, choosing local produce is an important step towards a more environmentally friendly society.
