[getsmart-l] We always chose the smallest strawberries for the best jam.

[John O'Gorman]

STUDY: FAT FRUIT
Nutrients diminish as produce gets bigger
by Andrew Schneider Globe and Mail Sept.14/07

When it comes to eating fruits, vegetables and . grain, bigger may not be better for you. 

A report issued this week examined several recent studies by food scientists, nutritionists, growers and plant breeders. It found clear evidence that as the produce we eat gets larger, its vitamins, minerals and beneficial chemical compounds significantly diminish, as does taste and aroma. 

Growing bigger tomatoes and ears of corn leads to a bigger yield for the producer, but the trade-off is lower nutritional value. 

Some say the gutting of the nutritional value of what we eat could affect public health, particularly in poorer countries. 

"There is no sinister villain behind this," said Chuck Ben .. brook, chief scientist for the Rhode Island-based Organic Center, which commissioned the report. "Increasing the amount of food grown per acre, by itself, is a good thing. 

"The problem is that, until recently, no one ever checked to see what was happening to the nutritional value of these much larger tomatoes, bigger grapefruit and the rest of the crops. 

"Now we're in trouble. Not just the U.S. but almost every Western country that is using improved growing methods," he said. 

Because of the work of plant scientists and crop breeders, farmers have doubled or tripled the yield for each acre of most major fruits, vegetables and grains over the past 50 years. 

Agriculture's "almost single-minded focus on increasing yields created a blind spot" in nutritional content, said Brian Halweil, author of the report, Still No Free Lunch. 

The report said studies found: 

The more a tomato weighs, the lower its concentration of lycopene, an antioxidant that makes tomatoes red. There is also less vitamin C and beta carotene, a nutrient linked to vitamin A. 

Milk from high-production dairy cows has lower concentrations of fat, protein and other nutrition-enhancing components than the milk from dairy operations of 20 years ago or more. 

Corn, potatoes and whole-wheat bread show double-digit declines in iron, zinc and calcium. The time span of the decline varies depending on the product studied, but generally ranges from 20 to 100 years. 

New York Times News Service
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