Two interesting news items for you in case you missed them recently in the media:
“WASHOUT 2012 DRAINS FRUIT & VEG OF NUTRIENTS” by Nick McDermott. Daily Mail 10.1.13
Scientists have found that heavy rain in 2012 has caused fruit and veg to be less nutritious. Some wheat harvests were found to have a third less iron and zinc than average. A lack of sunshine last year also led to some edible plants having reduced nutritional value including carrots, potatoes and wheat. Mike Gooding, a professor of crop scienc from Reading University said that plants can’t manufacture minerals, so if there are less minerals in the soil, there will be less of them in the crop. He advised people to vary their diet and ensure they eat produce harvested from diverse locations and grown at different times of the year. One expert said that some water-soluble vitamins may be reduced, such as vitamin C in potatoes.
Ed’s comment: we already know that soil levels of nutrients have drastically reduced over the last few decades due to over-farming of our land mainly so, if this is true that the wet weather can affect nutrient levels too, that’s a concerning double whammy. Go for organic fruit and veg if you can since it is usually farmed less intensively allowing the soil to recover. Can’t do much about the wet weather though 😉
Some bright spark in the comments online suggested we should start growing more rice (wet paddies, geddit?) V funny.
“WE THROW AWAY HALF OUR FOOD” by Nick McDermott. Daily Mail 10.1.13
Up to half the food we buy from supermarkets goes in the waste bin despite much of it being perfectly edible, a report revealed on 10th Jan. Experts blame confusion over sell-by dates and retailers’ ‘buy one, get one free’ offers that tempt shoppers to buy more than they need. The report by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, says up to three quarters of veg grown in UK ends up never being eaten, with large amounts being left in the field or rejected by supermarkets for not being a perfect shape. Supermarkets said they lobbied the EU to relax the strict EU size rules on fruit and veg, to allow them to sell more misshapen produce.
Ed’s comment: For goodness sake…! I am speechless. For once.
Related articles
- Washout year may have hit nutrition and taste of UK fruit and veg (guardian.co.uk)
- Up to half of world’s food goes to waste, report says (metronews.ca)
One more reason to be grateful that I live where I do. Also, the availability of locally grown and excellent produce is another wonderful benefit. Shop at your local markets and we shall all be better off!
Absolutely right! Just wish we had one nearby…