4 Summer Tricks to Eat Sustainably All Year

The summer always makes our food system feel a lot smaller, doesn’t it? Many of us reconnect with our green thumbs to plant backyard gardens or spend our weekends at farmers markets. There are some simple home tricks however, to support a local food system all year long. Check out our tips below and let us know what we are missing in the comments! 

1- Get Preserving! 

Fill your pantry with canned fruit, fermented veggies, or homemade jams! All you need is a few simple and natural ingredients, as well as a couple affordable pieces of equipment. Preserving produce takes some time, but it’s a great activity to do with kids or to do on a rainy day. Check out this blog for all the details. Alternatively, optimize your freezer! Reuse frozen fruit bags or jars, and fill with local berries. 

2– Dry Out Your Herbs 

If you have a herb garden that you are sad to give up this winter, cut it before it gets too cold! Separate the cut bundles into smaller bundles, wash them, lay them to dry for a few hours, then tie them upside down. This will help the herbs dry out well. Leave them upside down, out of the sun, until the leaves are crispy. You can then take them down from hanging and store them in airtight containers. 

3– Talk To Your Local Farmers About Winter CSAs 

In the summer, many of us spend much more time talking to those that produce our food. When you find yourself in conversation with a local farmer, or learning more about Spud.ca’s produce vendors, consider reaching out to them and asking about whether they offer winter CSAs. Some farmers are able to store and provide local veggies all winter long! 

4– Print Spud.ca’s “What’s In Season” Calendar 

Keeping up to date with what is in season can be challenging. To make things easier for you to identify what produce you should buy when, print out this calendar and post on your fridge. If you are shopping on Spud.ca, you can also use our food miles calculator to figure out whereabouts your food is coming from. On each food item’s product page, the distance it travelled to get to our warehouse is listed.