Taste Test: Farmer's Market Vs Store Bought

Battle Royal!

I was curious how much of a difference there was between food from the supermarket and the farmer’s market so I decided to do a taste test. I have to confess I went into this test a bit biased, I didn’t think there would be much difference depending on where you bought it. An apple is an apple.

First I had Brussels sprouts prepared both in the same steaming pot at the same time so the cooking time and temperature were exactly the same. I put salt, pepper and butter on them. I found there to be a bit of an acrid taste in the grocery store brussels sprouts that were not in the Farmers market brussels sprouts. They had a more mellow, buttery flavor. I do feel like I can definitively say that the farmers market’s brussels sprouts were superior to the supermarket version.

Next I tried farmers market hazelnuts vs supermarket hazelnuts. I got the supermarket version from the bulk bins, so that might already put things in favor of the farmer’s market. They may have sat in there a little while before I got to them. Taking that into consideration, the farmer’s market nuts had more flavor and were much crunchier than the store bought nuts. The supermarket nuts were chewy in comparison which isn’t what I look for in a nut.

Next taste test was apples.

The one on the left is from the farmer’s market and the one on the right is from the regular grocery store. The farmer’s market apple was a good size smaller, more than it appears in the above photo. The flavor of the farmer’s market apple was sweeter and better tasting overall. The super market apple had a bitter after taste, similar to the brussels sprouts.

This got me wondering what is causing this bitter taste I keep tasting in the super market produce? Turns out supermarket fruits are usually picked earlier to account for shipping. Apples continue converting starch to sugar only for a week to a few weeks. I was shocked to learn it can take an apple one to fourteen months from being picked going on salt at the grocery store. It can be six to eight weeks for brussels sprouts.

In addition to sugar production halting, vitamin C levels drop 10-50% within days to weeks, as well as some vitamin B loss. Many other vegetables like onions and potatoes also take up to a year to get to the grocery store.

It seems clear to be that if you want the most delicious produce you should go to the farmer’s market. There are a few downsides however. The first one which is pretty significant is the prices are much more expensive then buying from the supermarket. It’s not a subtle 5-10% increase, it can be sometimes around twice the price depending on the vendor.

The other biggest issue is the double edged sword that getting freshly grown local foods is great, but you are limited to what is grown in the area you live in and at the time of the year that you buy it. There are several ways to deal with this, you can go to the market and see what’s available and tailor your meals around what is in season. You may learn to work with some new foods you aren’t used to like butternut squash. You could also go the market first and get everything you can than follow up with a visit to the supermarket to getting anything left on your grocery list.

I personally think the cost is worth it and will make it a habit of going to the farmer’s market every weekend and picking up produce for the rest of the week.

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