Member-only story
Where Does Your Carrot Come From?
The store, the farm, the ground
When was the last time that you ate a carrot that wasn’t a “baby” carrot?
Today over 70% of carrots sold are in the form of a baby carrot in a bag, this is a great convenience that doubled carrot consumption from 1987 to 1997, and it was up to 12 pounds per person in America in 2006.
But this bag? This bag has made me think (albeit a bit too much), about the humble carrot and people’s relationship with where their food comes from. Can you answer any of the following questions?
Where does a carrot come from?
How do carrots get to the grocery store?
How do the carrots get into the ground?
Have you seen carrots with the greens attached?
Do you know that the greens grow above ground and the carrot is the root?
Are you lost, have you been to a farm lately?
As with many aspects of our food system, our society has become detached from not just the farm, but understanding how food is grown.
When most people taste a carrot that has been pulled from the soil, they are amazed at the flavor of the carrot. It has a crispier crunch. It is not wet and slimy, and definitely not like a “baby”…
