
Why fruits and vegetables taste better in Europe - mgdo
http://www.vox.com/2016/2/12/10972140/fruits-vegetables-taste-better-europe
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EvanPlaice
Because they're ripe.

I worked at an outdoor produce stand when I was younger. I've been to a number
of distribution facilities where fruits/vegetables are bought in bulk.

For the more expensive produce that goes to grocery stores, they use
artificial ripening chamber to make the fruit look ripe on the outside while
they're nowhere near ripe on the inside. It guarantees a good looking product
that has maximum shelf life.

For other fruits, like strawberries. They're massive size is what contributes
to the poor quality taste. Selectively breeding to produce maximum output has
a bad effect on quality.

Vegetables become bitter when they get old. Supermarkets have gotten better at
keeping vegetables looking fresh for longer but old tastes old, period.
Anybody who has never had veggies fresh from the garden has no idea how good
they can taste.

Everything about the modern supermarket focuses on presentation over quality.
Even the produce section is strategically placed next to the entrance to give
shoppers an impression of freshness and vibrance.

It's all for show, keeping consistently full bins of fruits/veggies means a
lot of product will go to waste and the supermarket needs to use every means
possible to extend the shelf life as long as possible.

A much more realistic, albeit messy setup will look more like Walmart. There
will be bins that are nearly empty, variations of quality, size, condition,
etc. Real produce (ie not the plastic sold in supermarkets) is sometimes
messy, dirty, ugly. You don't buy it for how it looks, you buy it for how it
tastes.

If you want really good tasting produce, buy from a produce stand. They can't
afford refrigeration and long-term storage so they buy the cheaper and better
tasting produce.

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justinclift
Do you reckon buying organic vegetables would help alleviate that in the US?

Here in the UK, it seems to be effective for obtaining decent tasting
tomatoes. The non-organic ones can taste _very_ bad.

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EvanPlaice
I doubt it. AFAIK, organic just means the produce hasn't been treated with
synthetic pesticides/herbicides.

Artificial ripening just accelerates the natural process so I wouldn't be
surprised if it can be appplied to organics too.

It seems to be especially hard to find good tomatoes in stores, organic or
not. Tomatoes become bruised/damaged very easily during shipment. Customers
don't buy bruised product so I think supermarkets have responded by offering
more dense but less tasteful varietys.

If taste is your concern, growing your own is the best option. If you buy in
stores try the smaller varietys and the ones that feel softer to the touch.

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cmarschner
The author mistakes Europe with Italy. North of the 45th parallel the tomatoe
experience is very similar to that of the US. And even in the south - the area
of Almeria in Spain is the home of the most mass produced, tasteless
vegetables possible. Sadly, Northern Europeans also focus on price and color,
not on smell and taste. EU regulations for fruit and vegetable trading classes
only consider form, size, color. Nothing about taste. The closest to getting
good produce (except for buying at the producer) is to look for organic
produce.

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cJ0th
As far as I remember I never ate an American tomato but I can assure you that
even in Europe homegrown tomatoes taste way better than those you can buy at
the supermarket.

Let's see whether our supermarket tomatoes will get even more watery when TTIP
passes :/

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JimBarrows
So, basically MBA's, and tasteless Americans.

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bhangi
I think the key is seasonality, though I'm sure that regulations and customer
willingness to pay for quality do play a role. For instance, I find that
fruits and vegetables taste better in India too and the typical Indian
customer is very price sensitive and generally unwilling to pay a premium for
quality. But availability is usually seasonal.

