When the fresh produce seems scarce or prices have gone up… head over to the frozen food aisle for some frozen vegetables.

It may surprise you that in the winter months frozen vegetables can be a healthier option than fresh produce.

The reasoning behind this is that your vegetablesare the most nutrient dense when they are freshest and as they sit on the shelf in the grocery store the nutritional value begins to decrease. This is why most grocery stores will select produce before it is ripe to maximize the amount of time they have to safely transport and stock the new product which creates another issue. vegetables that are picked before ripening is not given the opportunity to develop the optimal amount of vitamins and minerals.

Frozen food on the other hand goes through two freezing processes at the point in time when the vegetables are the freshest, and then they are preserved at this nutrient dense level for transportation and storage.

Some tips on frozen vegetables :

• Choose vegetables that are flash frozen and don’t contain added sodium

• Stay away from frozen vegetables labeled “US 1” or “US 2”

• Even frozen vegetables eventually lose nutritional value so don’t store them forever

• Consume as many different colors as possible to get a diverse range of valuable nutrients

• Try to consume at least 3 cups of vegetables a day

• Steam or microwave vegetables instead of boiling to preserve water-soluble nutrients