To think the fruit & veg we buy, is bland?

[SukiTheDog]

I bought some Cox’s apples yesterday at a well known supermarket. Although I eat plenty of fruit, I’m not keen on apples but Cox’s were always a firm favourite of mine. We used to live close to an orchard and they were wonderful apples, if a little misshapen at times. I’ve just washed them and had one. It tasted of .... nothing. No sweetness, no flavour. Nowt. Apart from the texture, I could have been eating any of the tasteless varieties of apple, filling our shelves now.

What’s happening to our food, seriously? It’s all so bland and nondescript. I think tomatoes have gone the same way. They look like a tomato and feel like a tomato but frankly, there’s no tomato-iness anymore. You need a ton of salt on it to have it taste of anything?

What’s going on?

I don't see why you can't take non-organic stuff back and get a refund if it is shit. If it is watery and tastes nothing like it should it's sub standard and shouldn't be sold. Perhaps the more people that do that standards would improve but that's a long way off. You're throwing your hard-earned cash away if you don't ask for a refund. Bag it up and take back. I do this too if when I get round to starting the fruit I see one item going rotten such as one orange mouldy. In a bag of 4 or 5 it's a substantial amount. Never had a problem in getting a refund on that either.

I’ve looked online and found some farm shops in my area. One near me sells organic fruit and vegetables so we’re going there shortly to see what they have.

I’m sick of tasteless fruit and vegetables from the supermarket as well. We bought some fresh cauliflower, sprouts and cabbage from the outdoor market last year and were astounded by the difference in taste. It was so much cheaper as well.

Farmers need to produce uniform veg for super markets so the grow varieties that have cheep seed and are fast growers and all developer at the same rate.
If you go to your local garden center there are so many varieties that choose from.If you are growing at home you don't choose hybrids as you don't want all you veg maturing at the same size and you don't care if they don't look like the veg in children's nursery books.You do care about the taste.I used to have a big garden but even with a small one I have kale growing amongst the flowers and I'm still pulling late show carrots from a container.
Also eat seasonally and really enjoy fresh apples and strawberries in July.
The only veg we seem to have offered in different varieties are potatoes,apples and some lettuce.

With Riverford I don't think the difference is that it's organic. I think it's that they aren't prepared to sell you strawberries in March.

The website is clear about what is coming into season and if they haven't got it, you aren't getting it.

Plus they are happy to tolerate a much higher degree of wonky veg than the supermarket.

How do you decide which veg box to order?

Yes, particularly tomatoes. Cheap tomatoes have no taste. To get a tomato taste you have to spend more and buy on the vine or piccolo.

I agree wrt supermarket fruit and veg.

We have a small nursery near to us and the difference in flavour of the fruit/veg I get from there is incredible.

Yes, it doesn't look as pretty (wonky carrots etc) but it's all seasonal and often harvested the same day it's put on sale.

I can still see the look on my granddaughters face when she picked some cherry tomatoes in my garden, ate them when they were still warm from the sun. Her whole face lit up.

Figs warm from the sun are a delight

If you are interested in growing your own fruit and vegetables and haven't the space it is worth checking out your local allotments.

When we initially enquired we were told the waiting list was 20 years! In fact a few months later we got a call to say that a plot had come available. Waiting lists change all the time.

Well, this thread has inspired me to get off my fat aris and walk to the market. I've come back with fresh spuds, turnips, leeks, carrots and cauliflower, and apples and plums which are out of season and a bit more of a gamble. Also got some ox cheek and am now cooking (very, very slowly) a beef stew for through the week.

Fantastic atmosphere in the market, especially as there was a choir performing while I was there. The market has a lot of little eateries, including an Indian street-food stall and a fabulous seafood café, so it's always lively on Saturday. A very strong reminder of how much I hate supermarkets.

Excellent @Skiilten

I’ve been to the market today. Not tried anything yet. Will hopefully taste a difference. Bought organic...not a huge difference in prices.

We went to the farm shop and bought some vegetables and some apples. Their stock was low because they’re getting a delivery next week. We got homemade marmalade and some organic soup and cake.

Will definitely go back for fruit and veg though. I’ve had it with the supermarkets.

What an interesting thread OP 👍🏼

It's true. I felt the same about some grapes I ate once. Non-organic.
Organic. Does taste a bit more flavoursome, but TBH it's probably blanc compared to food we are 100. Or so years ago. The food has been bred and is also grown differently. It's well weird.

I have found the Sable grapes from M&S are quite sweet and tasty, I buy them a lot

Thanks Skiilten
I will investigate further!

@RingtheBells, I had red grapes from M&S last week. They’re a £ more than Sainsbury’s for the same amount but very different. Not organic. Even DS noticed as he crammed a handful in his mush 😊. “These are really nice!”

The more out of season locally something is the further it has to travel, the more that travel impacts on the varieties which get sold. If the fruit/veg is going to have a long journey and still be salable at the the end then flavour shifts further down the priority list.

This time of year grapes will be coming from the southern hemisphere. It's a big journey so the fruit will need to be robust. You will get flavoursome varieties but to get here they will likely have been flown in.

For locally grown produce this time of year the rhubarb will soon be coming in. Broad beans also will start to make an appearance. This going from what is starting to get going on my allotment.