Eating seasonally means eating food that's naturally ripe and ready for harvest in your local area at the time, instead of imported foods from different climates around the world.
Eating organic, seasonal food, or food that you've grown at home can make a big difference in cutting down your food miles, helping to make your diet more sustainable and reduce your carbon footprint.
As we wave goodbye to the hungry gap, there's a great selection of seasonal British fruit and veg available! Look out for:
Courgettes
Chard
Broad Beans
Aubergines – best in July but June onwards
Chard – two seasons from Jun – Aug, and Oct-Apr
New potatoes
Onions - Mar to Aug first season
And for your salads & Herbs:
Spring onions
Watercress
Spinach
Parsley
Rocket – early summer onwards
Raspberries
Strawberries
Gooseberries
Cherries (mid-June to September)
Peaches (July onwards)
Blackcurrants & Redcurrants
Veg and fruits sown in Spring are now ready for first harvest. Growers have a lot to be getting on with at this time of year:
Salad Crops- will produce a quick turnaround for harvest – lettuce, radishes (fast-maturing), leafy salads, rocket
Beetroot – plant in June for September & October
Brassicas like Kale, Pak Choi can be planted, along with Winter & Spring cabbages – winter cabbages in June (last chance), Spring in July/August
Courgettes & Squash, along with Pumpkins & other winter squash.
Leeks can be planted in July
Plant Radicchio/Chicory, Swede, celeriac at this time.
Fennel
Carrots during June and July
Peas (inc mangetout & snap peas)
What we choose to put on our plates has the power to make a world of difference. Find out how choosing organic can offer solutions to many of the crises around our climate, nature, and our health.
A great way ensure you are eating seasonally is to subscribe to a fruit, veg or meat box. You'll be joining a community of amazing citizens, farmers and organisations who are making sure the way we farm and eat is better for our health, better for nature and wildlife, and better for the climate too.
Delicious as part of a mezze or served simply with a green salad, this recipe from renowned eco-chef Tom Hunt will have you eating with the seasons.
This is a recipe that showcases cauliflower to the full. From founder of Rebel Recipes and self-confessed cauliflower fanatic Niki Webster.
Who says sprouts are only for Christmas? This seasonal side dish is perfect all the way through winter.