How to Start Eating Seasonally

Why Seasonal Eating Matters

If you’ve ever bitten into a tomato in February and been disappointed by how flavorless and mealy it was, then you’ve discovered one of the reasons to eat seasonally!

To “eat seasonally” means to only eat fruits and vegetables at the time of year that they naturally grow and ripen in our region.

In spring, we have lots of fresh leafy greens and herbs. In summer, we have everything from tomatoes to strawberries and cucumbers to watermelon. In autumn, fall favorites like apples and pumpkins are plentiful. In winter, we enjoy vegetables that store well like garlic, onions, and winter squashes.

Eating seasonally means you enjoy fresher and more flavorful food, you get food with higher nutritional value, you have a lower environmental impact, and you support local farmers. In this blog post, we dive more into the reasons to eat seasonally.

Thankfully, eating seasonally doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive!

Simple Steps to Start Eating Seasonally

Start Small

Begin by adding a few seasonal vegetables to your regular meals. For the month of September, we’ll be sharing 3 seasonally vegetables (and 1 bonus veggie) each week. Members of our community will be cooking up these spotlighted items each week and sharing our creations in our first annual FoxRAP Veg Pledge. It’s completely free to join and open to everyone!

If you’ve been wanting to eat more seasonal food, this is the perfect way to do it – we’re sharing recipes, videos, and information about each vegetable. It’s easy, simple, and fun as a community.

You can take the Veg Pledge here and start adding more seasonal produce to your meals this month.

Shop Locally

Shop at farmers markets, farm stands, CSAs, and local grocery stores with seasonal produce sections. When you purchase from local farmers, what’s available is what’s in season. This simplifies your shopping. Just let what’s being sold guide your menu for the week.

Who knows more about what’s ripe and ready to eat than the person growing it? Beyond seeing what’s currently available at farmers markets and farm stores, you can also ask farmers about the seasonality of items. They can tell you which items are ending their season so you can buy them now, and which will be available soon that you can look forward to.

Learn about Your Local Seasons

The length of time certain fruits and vegetables are available vary from state to state and region to region. We have a Wisconsin Seasonal Availability calendar to help you see what produce items you can expect in different months.

When fruits and vegetables will be ready varies slightly every year depending on the weather. Sometimes items can be “early” or “late” if it’s been unusually hot or cold, rainy or dry. If you expect something to be available and it isn’t, ask a farmer who can let you know how this year’s growing season is going. At the end of the day, we’re all at the mercy of the weather!

Keep it Simple

Simple prep methods, like roasting, tossing in salads, or sautéing, work well for most vegetables. If you’re unfamiliar with how to prepare a particular vegetable, a quick Internet search will provide plenty of information and recipe ideas.

When you discover a preparation method you enjoy, add it to your meal rotation. With a few reliable techniques in your toolkit, you won’t need to learn new recipes constantly. Simply repeat what works for you.

Buy a Little to Experiment

As you shop from local farmers or subscribe to a CSA, you will probably come across a fruit or vegetable that you haven’t heard of before. Purchase a small amount and give it a try! Who knows, it could be your new favorite thing.

If you’re unsure if you’ll like something, start with a small amount to keep things fun without being overwhelming or wasteful.

Ask the farmer you’re purchasing from for recipe or preparation recommendations for items you are unfamiliar with. Farmers are full of cooking tips and recipe ideas! They’ve taken great pride in growing food for you and they’re happy to help you learn how to prepare it properly so you can fully enjoy it.

Start Enjoying Seasonal Variety

There’s adventure in the variety of seasonal eating. You can enjoy things at their most delicious and nutritious.

What you choose to put on your plate goes a long way in being environmentally conscious, supporting local farmers, and fueling your body and mind.

If you’re ready to take the first steps to eat more seasonally, join us for the month of September for our FoxRAP Veg Pledge! We’ll send you a list of 3 seasonal vegetables each week. It’s a simple and easy way to get started eating seasonally.