The other day I went into a supermarket to buy fruit. I normally don’t buy fruit at supermarkets, and I was reminded of the reason why on that occasion.
There was barely anything that looked edible, except for the vegetables. The apples were boring. The melons looked unripe. The grapes looked a bit shriveled and dirty. The other fruits were nothing exciting.
For most people, that’s the sight of the fruit selection at this time of the year. That’s if you don’t have access to a good fruit market.
I heard from a fruit importer that there is only 5-10% of the produce coming into the UK that is worth anything. Everything else is low quality and that is what you find in most places.
Compare that to the market where I buy my fruits. At the same time of the year, I bought some of the best mangoes I’ve ever had in my life. The grapes were incredible. The melons were bursting with flavor. Everything I bought was extraordinary.
Why is there such a big difference between specialized fruit markets and regular supermarkets for fruit quality? The specialized markets order the best quality fruits through their own channels, while the supermarkets only want to compete on price. They don’t care about quality.
Obviously, there are always exceptions. If you walk into a Marks & Spencer or Waitrose supermarket in London, you might find amazing fruit, but the price will also be stupidly high.
So where do you find a good fruit grocer?
It’s different in every city, and some are better than others. If there’s a big central market in your city, you might want to start there, and examine the shops around it.
In North America, the East Coast cities usually have much better importers than the West Coast cities.
But on the West Coast you’ll find more farmers markets and organic food.
In Australia, the best market I found was the Prahran Market and Queen Victoria Market. I visited them during a DJ tour I was doing in Australia in 2008.
In London, I buy most of my fruit at the New Covent Garden market.
If you can’t find the markets I’m talking about, start with Chinatown. The produce stores in Chinatown are usually open to selling you fruits by the case and negotiating a bit on price.
Speaking of negotiation, the profit margin on a case of fruit is pretty small. As long as there’s a deal for the case versus buying by the pound, I don’t argue on price.
Once you find a good grocer, keep going there week after week to establish a relationship. Here are the elements of a good market:
– They should ideally ONLY sell fruits and vegetables and almost no other foods.
– They should sell you fruit by the case and be eager to do so.
– They should let you taste all the fruits before you buy them.
– They should give you a discount on the case.
– They should have the best-quality fruit only.
Eating fruit during the day and other foods after 6 p.m. is a great way to follow a raw or high-raw diet. But for that, you need to have a good supply of the best-quality fruit. So start your hunt this week!
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