Whether you need to stock your fridge for the week ahead or grab some last-minute ingredients to whip up a springtime veggie pie for a dinner party it turns out there’s an absolute worst time to shop for fresh produce. It’s no secret that grocery stores get frustratingly full as the end of the workday approaches. But the reason behind the unfortunate timing has more to do with what’s on the shelves than how many people are in the aisles. If you need to buy fruits and vegetables during your trip to the grocery store think carefully about when you go. Otherwise the harvest may be limited—and potentially worse for your health too.
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How do Germans do their shopping? Come with us and see.
As a rule of thumb avoid buying produce around noon: the quantity and quality of what’s available may not be optimal. Most supermarkets receive new stock just before opening or closing in the evening and turn off the freshest produce shortly afterward so it’s not left to wither. By late afternoon or early evening shoppers have already sifted through the day’s bounty and are abandoning what they didn’t think was good enough to take home.
To get the best looking and ripest fruits and vegetables you should get to the supermarket as soon as possible after a delivery. When shopping for fruits and vegetables it turns out that it pays to be an early bird or a night owl.
While there are many ways to shop strategically for produce including knowing what signs to look for and what to avoid the simplest tip comes down to timing. After all when you shop affects what’s available. Fresh fruit and vegetable displays will quickly diminish during peak grocery store hours typically the afternoons on weekends and early evenings on weekdays. So if you want to make sure you can find what you need (and that there are options available) shop early in the morning or late at night. The closer you go to store opening and closing times the fresher the produce is likely to be.
