Striving for the highest quality produce during a fast.
One method of doing a fruit fast is to choose only fruits in season. By doing this, you purchase fruits that
are the freshest and at their optimal level of nutrition.
Our produce today is shipped to us from all
over the world. These potentially long transit times means the produce must be harvested before it's natural
ripening period, since unripe, "green", fruits ship much better than fully ripe fruit.
By selecting fruits in season for our area of the world, we are increasing the likelihood that they have
been shipped a lesser distance and been harvested closer to their natural stage of ripening and contain the
greatest level of nutritional punch.
Seasonal diets are becoming more popular where only in-season fruits and vegetables are used. Following
nature's guidelines by eating the foods that are indigenous to our area and at their time of natural ripening,
puts us in greater attunement with the world we live in. Nature provides us the perfect foods for our bodies
at any time of year.
While sticking to seasonal produce 100% may be impractical for our everyday meals, it is certainly possible
during a fruit fast or cleansing diet. Some of
the best produce for a fruit fast are citrus, apples, grapes, pears, melons, and berries, so there's a good fruit
available for fasting at any time of year.
Apples, due to their naturally long "shelf life", are appropriate for a fruit fast
(see apple fruit fast cleanse) in a cold clime during
the winter months when most other fruits are naturally scarce. Of course, you could opt for a
grain fast in the winter, as well, enjoying its
warming and calming influences.
Local Food Finder
What's Fresh Near You
Find out what's fresh and ripe where you live, right now.
For accurate information on the produce in your area, but only useful to those in the U.S., use the search to
the right (or above, depending on your browser), offered by The Natural Resources Defense Council. You put in
your state and the time of year and it will tell you what produce is being harvested in your area. If there
isn't anything being harvested in your state, it will give you information about the states near you.
Update July 2010: The NRDC has changed the format somewhat. Good news though, now they will help you find a
farmers' market near you. You still just type in your state and a season and click the button.
Seasonal Fruit Chart
For general seasonal guidelines, use the chart below. The time frames will vary somewhat from one part of the
country to another, but can still be helpful toward your planning.
Eating local harvest also has the advantage of supporting your local agribusiness, promotes organic farming
practices and "green" living. Avoiding produce that has been shipped great distances saves on fossil fuels and
the pollution emitted by them.
