With our supermarket shelves stocked with our favourite produce year-round, it’s easy to lose sight of which items are in season. There are myriad reasons why this is important.
Let’s explore!
Higher Nutritional Value
Seasonal fruits and vegetables are ripened by the sun; this natural process makes the produce taste better and packs them with antioxidants and phytonutrients, resulting in a higher nutritional value.
Produce picked during a natural harvest season and consumed not long after means no nutrients are lost. Produce loses nutritional value the longer it is stored or sits while being transported.
Nature’s Medicine
Each season offers a unique harvest of fruits and vegetables carefully designed by nature to support the body’s seasonal nutritional needs.
It is no coincidence that citrus fruits laden with vitamin C are abundant in winter. Imagine battling the cold and flu season without them?
Buying Local is the Sustainable Choice
Eating seasonal fruits and vegetables supports local businesses, and because the produce doesn’t have far to travel, there are fewer food miles and a lesser environmental impact.
Seasonal Abundance Reduces the Cost
Seasonal crops thrive as conditions are optimal for their abundant growth. As a result, they are less expensive.
Produce grown out of season must be imported or grown in managed conditions. The associated costs are passed on to the consumer as reflected in their price tag.
As a rule of thumb, if you commit to buying fruit and vegetables grown in N.Z, you can be satisfied that you are purchasing seasonal produce.
Spring – September to November
Vegetables: Artichokes, Asparagus, Avocado*, Beans, Beetroot, Blueberries, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage (Green)*, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Courgettes, Cucumber, Eggplant, Fresh Herbs, Kale, Kumara, Leeks, Lettuce*, Mushrooms, Onions, Parsnips, Peas, Potatoes, Pumpkin*, Radishes, Silverbeet, Snow Peas, Spinach, Spring Onions, Sprouted Beans and Seeds, Swedes, Tomatoes, Watercress, Yams.
Fruit: Grapefruit, Kiwifruit (Gold), Kiwifruit (Green), Lemons, Oranges (Navel), Strawberries, Tangelos.
Summer – December to February
Vegetables – Artichokes, Asparagus, Avocado*, Beans, Beetroot, Blueberries, Broccoli, Buttercup Squash, Butternut, Cabbage (Green)*, Capsicum, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Courgettes, Cucumber, Eggplant, Fresh Herbs, Kale, Kumara, Lettuce*, Mushrooms, Onions, Parsnips, Peas, Potatoes, Pumpkin*, Radishes, Silverbeet, Snow Peas, Spinach, Spring Onions, Sprouted Beans and Seeds, Sweetcorn, Tomatoes, Watercress.
Fruit – Apples, Apricots, Blackberries, Blackcurrants, Boysenberries, Cherries, Gooseberries, Grapefruit, Honeydew Melon, Kiwifruit (Green), Lemons, Nashi Pears, Nectarines, Oranges (Valencia), Peaches, Pears, Plums, Raspberries, Redcurrants, Rock Melon, Strawberries, Tangelos, Watermelon.
Autumn – March to May
Vegetables – Avocado*, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Buttercup Squash, Butternut, Cabbage (Green)*, Capsicum, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Chilli Peppers, Courgettes, Cucumber, Eggplant, Fennel, Fresh Herbs, Kale, Kohlrabi, Kumara, Leeks, Lettuce*, Mushrooms, Onions, Parsnips, Potatoes, Pumpkin*, Radishes, Rhubarb, Silverbeet, Spinach, Spring Onions, Sprouted Beans and Seeds, Swedes, Sweetcorn, Tomatoes, Turnips, Watercress.
Fruit: Apples, Blueberries, Feijoas, Honeydew Melon, Kiwifruit (Gold), Limes, Mandarins, Nashi Pears, Nectarines, Passionfruit, Peaches, Pears, Persimmons, Plums, Rock Melon, Watermelon.
Winter – June to August
Vegetables – Avocado*, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage (Green)*, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Cucumber, Fennel, Kale, Kohlrabi, Kumara, Leeks, Lettuce*, Mushrooms, Onions, Parsnips, Potatoes, Pumpkin*, Radishes, Rhubarb, Silverbeet, Spinach, Spring Onions, Sprouted Beans and Seeds, Swedes, Tomatoes, Turnips, Watercress, Yams.
Fruit – Feijoas, Grapefruit, Kiwifruit (Gold), Kiwifruit (Green), Lemons, Limes, Mandarins, Oranges (Navel), Passionfruit, Persimmons, Tamarillos.
*Year-round availability due to different varieties with different harvest times