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Why Seasonal Eating is Good for You and the Planet

A photo of a freshly harvested summer vegetables

How much we enjoy our meal comes down to one word: flavor. What if there was a way to increase the flavor of what you eat while also benefiting your health and the health of our planet? That’s exactly what eating seasonally can do.

What is Seasonal Eating?

Eating seasonally encourages you to include in-season fruits and vegetables in your meal planning. If you’re curious about what’s in season in Florida throughout the year, there’s a list from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services a little further down.

Health Benefits of Eating Seasonally

More flavorful variety: As fresh produce comes in and out of season, you’ll find yourself eating a more varied diet. Branching out from the kinds of fresh produce you typically eat will give you important vitamins and minerals that you might not usually get with year-round staples.‌

Better nutrition: Because the demand for certain crops is high year-round, they are modified to grow in bulk and to resist disease. However, these modifications take away some of their nutritional benefits. When produce is grown during its natural timeframe, it grows and thrives without any harmful additives. For example, strawberries grown in the summertime — their natural season — are more nutritious and flavorful than strawberries grown in the wintertime.‌ Plus, fruits and vegetables that are allowed to ripen naturally and eaten shortly after harvesting contain higher levels of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, which help to protect against cancer and other serious diseases.

Environmental Benefits of Eating in Season

Seasonal eating doesn’t just benefit your tastebuds and your health. It also can help the planet. Here’s how:

Reduced greenhouse gases: Transporting food long distances requires a lot of energy. Enjoying food that’s in season for your part of the country means it’s grown closer to you and doesn’t need to travel through a long supply chain, which helps reduce regular greenhouse gas emissions.

Local economic growth: Eating in season is more affordable for you because the food is grown closer to your home. It also helps keep money in the local economy and supports local farmers.

Fewer chemicals: To transport food grown out of season long distances or to modify the harvest, requires wax coatings, chemical ripening agents, or other preservatives.

Freshness Served Daily at Freedom Plaza

“To have the optimum experience when eating, using fresh seasonal foods is the only way to do so.”  — Jaime Simoes, Jr., chef at Freedom Plaza and finalist for 2024 LCS Chef of the Year

 

Chef Jaime and the rest of our culinary team have access to a large variety of produce because of our location in Florida — allowing our dining venues to offer a wider variety of delicious options for our residents every day. In general, here’s when these crops are seasonally available.

Spring Summer Fall Winter
·       Bell pepper

·       Blueberry

·       Cabbage

·       Cantaloupe

·       Carrot

·       Cauliflower

·       Celery

·       Cucumber

·       Eggplant

·       Grapefruit

·       Guava

·       Lettuce

·       Mango

·       Mushroom

·       Orange

·       Papaya

·       Peaches

·       Peanut

·       Potato

·       Radish

·       Snap bean

·       Spinach

·       Squash

·       Strawberry

·       Sweet Corn

·       Tangerine

·       Tomato

·       Watermelon

 ·       Avocado

·       Carambola

·       Guava

·       Longan

·       Lychee

·       Mango

·       Mushroom

·       Passion fruit

·       Peanut

·       Watermelon

 

 ·       Avocado

·       Carambola

·       Cucumber

·       Eggplant

·       Grapefruit

·       Guava

·       Mushroom

·       Orange

·       Passion fruit

·       Peanut

·       Squash

·       Sweet corn

·       Tangerine

·       Tomato

 

 ·       Avocado

·       Bell pepper

·       Broccoli

·       Cabbage

·       Carambola

·       Cauliflower

·       Celery

·       Eggplant

·       Grapefruit

·       Guava

·       Lettuce

·       Mushroom

·       Orange

·       Papaya

·       Passion fruit

·       Peanut

·       Potato

·       Radish

·       Snap bean

·       Squash

·       Strawberry

·       Sweet corn

·       Tangerine

·       Tomato

 

 

You’re Sure to Enjoy Our Fresh Take on Senior Living

It’s not just an amazing dining program that has Life Care Services®, our management company winning J.D. Power Awards year after year for the highest independent living resident satisfaction score. To see what we mean, explore our amenities and learn about our philosophy for creating purposeful living filled with rich experiences. If you want to come check out our community for yourself, use our Community Assistant chat feature or contact us here.