COLUMN: Let's get seasonal! The benefits of seasonal eating and how do we do it?

As the seasons change throughout the year, so does the fresh produce we find on our supermarket shelves, in grocery stores and at farmers’ markets. But did you know there are some benefits to eating with the seasons?

Here, nutritionist Laurann O’Reilly and owner of Nutrition by Laurann, guides us through what seasonal eating is, the benefits and how we can incorporate it into our daily lives.

- What Is Seasonal Eating? Seasonal eating is essentially buying, cooking and eating produce at a time of year when it is naturally ready for harvest or eating fruit and vegetables that are “in season” at the peak of their freshness and flavour during a specific time of year (Ballymaloe Foods).

- Seasonal Eating In Ireland: All fruit and vegetables require certain temperatures, soil conditions, and sunlight to achieve optimum growth and quality. As the environment changes throughout the year and seasons, the fruits and vegetables we grow change with this. In Ireland, our mild and wet climate means that we have a long growing season for many vegetables. This allows the more ‘hardy’ vegetables such as cabbage, cauliflower and beetroot to remain in season all year round. Whilst many Irish berries and fruits are only available for a few months in the summer (StopFoodWaste.ie).

What Are The Benefits of Seasonal Eating?

Health Benefits

1) Seasonal Nutritional Adaptations: Our nutritional needs change as the seasons do too and traditionally our diets would adjust to match the season, with “lighter foods in spring and summer, and heartier, comfort foods in the winter” (Ballymaloe Foods). The availability of imported fruits and vegetables has seen a reduction in this seasonal eating pattern.

2) Nutritional Content: Food has the greatest nutritional content at its peak ripeness. When food is grown in season, it is more nutritious because it is adapted to the region, grown in soil, and harvested at its peak. If it is grown and delivered to the supermarket in the same season, it will provide the maximum amount of nutrients the produce has to offer.

3) A Greater Nutritional Variety: In a previous article, I discussed ‘Eating The Rainbow’, the same goes for seasonal foods. Instead of eating the same small group of fruits and vegetables year-round, seasonal eating encourages a varied diet. Branching out from your favourite kinds of fresh produce will give you important vitamins and minerals that you might not usually get.

4) Food Quality: Seasonal food tends to have more flavour than food that is grown out-of-season and can often be fresher. This is because the conditions to grow the produce are optimal, which ensures quality produce. Food grown out of season is harvested early so it can travel long distances and can often require the use of artificial ripening agents to prepare them for shop shelves.

Environmental Benefits: We have seen huge discussion recently about the importance of protecting our environment and seasonal eating can play a role in this too.

5) It Reduces Food Miles: Food that has travelled across the world to get to your plate has a much higher impact on our environment. More energy is needed to transport, refrigerate and store it and often, more packaging is needed to keep it fresh. Through buying and eating local, seasonal foods you can help reduce the environmental costs associated with your food.

6) It Prevents Food Waste: The longer food spends in storage and transit, the higher the chance of it spoiling and becoming waste. More than half of all food waste occurs along the supply chain. Buying locally and in season can help reduce the risk of food becoming waste before it gets to the shelves (StopFoodWaste.ie)

7) It Supports Local Businesses and Farmers: When you buy locally produced food, the money you spend stays in Ireland to support our farmers, farmers’ markets, vegetable stores and the whole community.

How Do We Know What Food Is Seasonal?

Here is a great seasonal calendar from StopFoodWaste.ie and The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) nutritionbylaurann.ie/ stopfoodwaste-epa-seasona lcalendar
December Seasonal Foods: Here is a list of our seasonal foods for this month with thanks to StopFoodWaste.ie

- Vegetables: Beetroot, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Carrots, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Celery, Kale, Leeks, Mushrooms, Parsnips, Potatoes, Lettuce and Turnips

- Fruits: Apples or Imported Banana and Clementine

- Herbs: Mint, Parsley and Thyme

How Do We Incorporate Seasonal Eating Into Our Meals?

- Add An Extra Fruit/Vegetable At Every Meal: My motto is “every meal is an opportunity to nourish” and in line with this, Bord Bia have a ‘Best In Season’ campaign, which encourages people to add an extra piece of fruit or a vegetable at every meal. is to “encourage consumers to pick local fresh produce which is in season”. As many of us struggle to reach our 5-a-Day in fruit and vegetables, it not only benefits us but also our local farmers.
Grow Your Own: Why not try and grow your own vegetables and you will always have fresh, in season food.
You may think that you need a big garden, green house or fancy equipment, but you may be surprised as to why you can grow with a balcony or windowsill and some sunlight.
Ballymaloe Foods suggest that “growing herbs on your windowsill is a great way for beginners to start growing their own food, chives, parsley, dill, fennel and mint work well and are very low maintenance. You will find that once these flavourful ingredients are within reaching distance of your prep area you will add them to your dishes”.
Try Some New Recipes: There are so many amazing recipes out there that can incorporate some of the seasonal foods listed above or within the seasonal calendar.

There is one to get you started below:

Seasonal Recipe
Roasted Root Vegetable Soup

A great recipe for combining seasonal vegetables such as turnips, carrots and celery. Combined with fresh ginger this is a warm and filling soup that's full of texture and flavour.

Ingredients
2 Medium carrots, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 Medium turnip, or parsnip cut into 1-inch chunks
1 Small yellow onion, peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 Celery stalk, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 Cloves garlic, peeled
1 Piece Fresh ginger root, ¼" sliced
½ Teaspoon Salt
¼ Teaspoon ground black pepper
2 Tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil, optional
720 ml Vegetable stock
2 Large Roma tomatoes, halved
3 Cups Kale, stemmed, roughly chopped
2 Teaspoons Fresh/dried coriander
1 Tin Chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Directions
Preheat oven to 200°Celcius and line a baking tray with parchment paper or tin foil
In a large bowl, combine the carrot, turnip, onion, celery, garlic, ginger, salt, pepper, oil together and toss to combine
Spread the prepared vegetables evenly across the lined baking tray and roast for 20-30 minutes or until the vegetables are tender and allow to cool slightly (set aside 1 full cup for later use)
Add remaining vegetables to a blender along with the tomatoes, vegetable stock and half the can of chickpeas and blend until you get a smooth and chick consistency
To the mixture in the blender add the kale, coriander, the remaining chickpeas and vegetables and blend until ingredients are lightly chopped and incorporated
Transfer to a saucepan to heat and serve with wholegrain bread.