Chances are, if you shop at Costco, you have seen the list of Organic items grow with every visit you make. While we love to support our local farm (through a CSA) .. we do pick up a fair amount of items at Costco.
They carry quite a large selection of organic items for a great price – when we buy in bulk, we get a better price on organic produce in comparison to shopping the weekly grocery sales.
But not every organic item is a great deal – some are better left there on the shelf. You can see our top 20 Organic picks at Costco if you head back here.
One of the MOST popular items is frozen {organic} produce. In an ideal world, we would always eat organic, fresh picked produce items ~ not frozen produce from a bag out of a warehouse cooler – right?
While we do get a fair amount of fresh produce through our CSA, we do turn to Costco for a few frozen items available – like Organic Broccoli and Organic Berry Medley Mix (which makes great smoothies). I love the 5 lb bag of Sweet Potatoes because it makes great bread, and Sweet Potatoes cook up wonderful in soup.
If you grow your own vegetables or live near a CSA that you invest in weekly, then you are likely getting your produce at the peak of ripeness – when their nutrient levels are the highest. My CSA often times gives me lettuce in my bag that has JUST been picked before we come to pick up – in comparison to the grocery store where the lettuce was probably trucked in from a distance.. I’ll take my CSA over grocery store produce any time.
But in some ways we all have to make compromises – and although they may not be fresh, frozen vegetables and fruits are a great alternative.
The Problem with MOST Fresh Produce
Frozen produce can sometimes be even more nutritious than their fresh counterparts… especially those produce items that are shipped from a far distance. If you are NOT part of a CSA, then chances are you shop at the supermarket like most Americans – produce is trucked in from rather large distances.
Since produce is shipped over long distances, it sits, for many hours (and even days) in trucks – all while losing nutrients as time passes. Take Spinach for example.… Spinach loses half of the folate it contains after 8 days (Src). If your produce is exposed to too much heat or light, then it can lose even more.
To ensure it looks at it’s best in the supermarket, most produce is picked when it is unripe – which can be an advantage for the shippers and stores but not necessarily to you – the consumer.
What About Frozen Produce?
One of the biggest advantages of frozen produce – whether it be fruits OR vegetables, is that they are picked when they are ripe. They are then blanched in hot water (which kills bacteria and stops enzyme activity that breaks down food), and flash frozen. Flash freezing helps preserve nutrients.
The key to buying frozen {organic} produce, is the stamp USDA “U.S. Fancy” — which is the highest standard in frozen produce. You also want to avoid produce that is peeled, or crushed, or even chopped – which results in a larger loss of nutrients- try to stick with those whole berry varieties that haven’t been crushed or chopped.
Is Frozen better than Canned?
In almost every case YES – because canned products are heated to extremely high temperatures to make them something that lasts a very long time in store, on shelves, and in your pantry, on a shelf.
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