The best tasting produce is the freshest produce.
For some, it comes straight from the garden but for people without time, room or desire to grow vegetables, there are always others that are willing to do the work and sell the product.
Local market gardeners have been selling early produce for the last month and will continue selling produce until the season is over at the end of September. Local produce is available through farmers markets or straight from their garden.
The best produce has been picked the night before or early in the morning on market day. It is then transported to a market.
While a large number of sellers are local and grow their own produce, others do not fall into this category. Ask questions to see where the fruit and vegetables come from.
Are the fruit and vegetables classified as organic, grown without spray or pesticides or with chemicals?
To sell produce as organic, one has to apply for organic status, which takes time and often a number of years. There are stringent regulations that must be followed regarding when the last chemical was used on the land, as well as a buffer between the organic land and areas where chemicals are used.
Organic produce must be grown without the use of synthesized chemicals in either fertilizers or pesticides. Seed can not be genetically modified.
All organic animals must be raised under humane conditions.
Produce might be called spray-free, which says that the produce was grown without any sprays chemicals or natural to kill pests. These growers have not gone through the process with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) that sets and regulates the Canadian Organic Standards. But they are providing a quality alternative to organic.
If the seller doesn’t mention how the produce is grown, chances are that they have used some form of chemical fertilizer or pesticide. This is not always bad as most of the harsher pesticides have been removed from store shelves.
When purchasing fresh produce at the market, give it as much or more care and attention as one would to produce from a grocery store. Look to see if it is fresh, crisp and clean.
People usually put the same amount of care in growing the produce as they do preparing it. Clean produce shows pride in the end product.
Ask when it was grown. Expect growers to bring in crops earlier than the average gardener as they use tunnels and covers to extend their season. The grower might have a market garden that is open to the public or has gate sales.
Ask when it was harvested. Most local growers harvest the morning of the market or the night before.
Produce that is brought in from B.C. will be ahead of Alberta. It will have been harvested and packed a number of days previous to the sale. It is a 10-to-12-hour drive into Central Alberta and sellers will have come over with enough product to supply a number of markets.
Even in the warmer climates, produce is still seasonal. Apples and pears are harvested in the fall. If they are being sold straight from the farm at this time of year, they are straight from storage.
Out-of-province produce will have missed the middle man, the wholesale buyer, which should make it fresher than what is bought in the store.
The fresher the produce, the better it tastes. Take time, ask questions and purchase the best that the budget allows.
Linda Tomlinson is a horticulturalist who lives near Rocky Mountain House. She can be reached at www.igardencanada.com or your_garden@hotmail.com.