Simple tips for buying summer fruit

The key to finding nutritious, tasty summer fruits is to buy them in peak season. Although harvests vary from year to year and place to place, you’ll be able to find high-quality fresh fruit if you know what to look out for.

Here's a list of when some of your favourite fruits will be at their tastiest:

Sweet, crunchy and juicy apples can be found any time of the year, including summer. Offering great taste as well as a dose of vitamin C and fibre, apples are a go-to fruit. Two of the most popular varieties are McIntosh and Red Delicious.

Watermelon is nutrient-rich and a popular addition to fruit salads or a good snack on its own. It’s one of the most refreshing summer fruits thanks to its high water content.Watermelon reaches its peak from July through September.

Low in calories and high in vitamin C and A, cantaloupe is a healthy and hydrating addition to your fruit bowl. It’s at its tastiest from June to August. Like other melons, cantaloupe contains lots of water, giving you that full feeling for longer.

From July to September, peaches are a popular fruit. As well as eating peaches on their own, you can use them for desserts, baking, smoothies, fruit salads or jam. Peaches give you a good dose of vitamin C.

Native to North America, blueberries are at their best from July to September. These yummy berries contain antioxidants and vitamins. They’re tasty on their own or as an addition to recipes like muffins, cakes, pies, pancakes and jams.

Red or green grapes are commonly eaten raw by themselves or added to fruit-and-cheese plates. These flavoursome fruits are found year round but they peak in August and September. They’re dense with nutrients and packed with water for a hydrating snack.

When you visit your local market, keep an eye out for other in-season favourites like strawberries, raspberries, apricots, plums, currants and cherries.

Here are a few tips for buying in-season fruit:

• You can often get the best value when you purchase fruit in packs, such as a box of apples or a large punnet of blueberries.
• Regardless of where you buy fruit or what kind of packaging it has, always give it a wash before you eat it.
• Summer fruit is sometimes already ripe when you see it at the store, so keep that in mind if you don’t plan on eating it right away.
• Freeze all your favourite fresh fruits so you can enjoy them all year long.

--------------------
Discover the smarter way to save time and money

Ready to start saving more on your groceries and pharmacy purchases? Download the FREE YP Grocery app today! It lets you create shareable shopping lists, automatically finds all the best deals and coupons, then delivers them right to you. No more manually scrolling through hundreds of flyers to find what you’re looking for!

Download the YP Grocery app now!