Why you should eat & shop locally

Hola, I am Paloma and come from sunny Spain. After my biology studies, I began studying nutrition at the International University of La Rioja in Spain. The field of nutrition has always fascinated me. Now, I am excited to expand my academic knowledge here in Austria. My Erasmus semester at FH JOANNEUM and studying in beautiful Graz have been wonderful experiences. I appreciate the kindness of the Austrians and have felt at home here from the beginning. In this blog post, however, I would like to talk less about this great city and more about nutrition, specifically seasonal fruits and vegetables.
A stroll through supermarkets reveals a plethora of fruits and vegetables, many of which are not suitable for the current season. This often leads to losing track of which foods are in season and which are not.

Advantages of seasonal fruits and vegetables:

🍎 Higher nutritional value and better taste
Early harvests, due to long transportation distances, often require extensive cooling to prevent spoilage. Sometimes, they even need to be artificially ripened before reaching the market. This affects the taste and changes the texture of the products. Antioxidants such as Vitamin C, folic acid, and carotenoids also quickly decrease when plant products are stored for longer periods. In contrast, with seasonal fruits and vegetables, nutritional properties, taste, and aroma are better preserved.

💸 Cost-effective
Seasonal foods are generally more affordable because the import of out-of-season products is associated with increased travel and storage costs. Consuming seasonal foods helps reduce or even eliminate these costs.

🌱 Sustainable
Consuming seasonal products supports local producers and requires less energy for production and storage. The carbon footprint of seasonal products is lower, as distances and transportation methods are reduced compared to non-seasonal products.

I encourage you to enjoy fruits and vegetables at the right time of the year! An example from my homeland, Spain, is watermelon, which is particularly popular during the summer months from June to September. Let's use regional products such as pumpkin in Styria or juicy watermelon in Spain to get all the nutrients and make an environmentally friendly choice.

Con cariño, Paloma Aguayo