Food Fact Friday: Bell Peppers!

Today we’re talking Bell Peppers! I absolutely love the ability of a bell pepper (or two) to add color to almost any dish. Let’s start out with some fun facts about this well-loved veggie:

·       Bell peppers rank higher in Vitamin C than oranges (and are also good sources of Vitamin A and B6)

·       Yellow bell peppers contain 3X the amount of vitamin C as red peppers!

·       Most varieties of bell peppers start out green in color and change as they ripen

·       Bell peppers are a part of the “nightshade” family of plants – a flowering family which includes tomatoes, potatoes and eggplant!

If you have the time – watch this 6 minute video about a redbell pepper farmer from New Jersey. I love the video for a couple of reasons:

1)     Bob Muth (of Muth Family Farms) uses an unconventional method of fertilizing (I will let you find out what it is)!

2)     Bob addresses the sad fact that consumers demand cosmetically perfect produce and that there is tremendous food waste generated because of this.

3)     I like the very real reminder that farm work is TOUGH. It’s often back-bending work, long hours and difficult environments. On top of it all – they really don’t get paid very much. This is yet another reason to be thankful for the food you are eating – and take at least a quick moment to recognize the MANY hands (and lives of animals) that go into your food, every time you eat.

Quote from Farmer Muth: “You want to leave the land in better condition than when you took it on”