Is it just me, or does fresh fruit from the grocery store not taste very good any more?

[Diamond_Dog]

Blueberries were on sale recently and I bought some, they have no flavor at all. Strawberries are sour and half of them in the box aren’t even ripe. Even bananas don’t taste as good as they used to. Does anyone else notice this? I’m thinking I’ll have to buy everything produced locally if I want decent fruit.

One exception, I bought some organic red raspberries at Aldi last week and they were delicious.

[SheltieLover]

1. They don't let them ripen on the vine (or tree) anymore.

A hige problem for me as I love cantalope, but it does not ripen once picked.

[Diamond_Dog]

2. Nothing worse than a cantaloupe with no flavor!

[SheltieLover]

7. Oh I know

[Sanity Claws]

60. I was about to post about the cantaloupe that I got

Did not have the sweetness that it should have.
I used to love cantaloupe.

[Rebl2]

67. I think

cantaloupe bought during June and July have the best flavor. Same with peaches. It’s been many years since I have tasted a sweet strawberry. Usually they are tart and the only way to make them sweet is to sprinkle sugar on them.

[womanofthehills]

89. The only delicious peaches are Colorado organic peaches in the fall

I live in NM outside a tiny town and for the last 6 yrs someone drives to Colorado to pick up a whole truckload of organic (seconds) Colorado peaches. The best in the US.

I peel mine and freeze them I just used up my last batch of frozen peaches from the fall a few weeks ago.

[Rebl2]

92. I like

cantaloupe from Colorado.

[Duncanpup]

13. I love cantaloupe

Delicious

[Diamond_Dog]

18. Home grown are best

[Deuxcents]

3. I don't think it's just you. I have fruit every morning at breakfast and the bananas are bland

The watermelon isn’t juicy and sweet and orange juice is bitter. They don’t taste the same and are expensive and I live in Florida where we are paying for out of state produce because we don’t grow most of our own anymore..it’s all been concreted for development.

[sop]

56. My father would always buy bags of oranges at roadside stands set up by the growers along highways in

central Florida. Best tasting fresh squeezed orange juice in the world. A lot of those orange groves are gone now, replaced by housing and commercial developments. The oranges they sell at Publix just don't taste the same.

[Diamond_Dog]

61. I remember when on a vacation in Florida in the late 90s

Went to a Publix to buy oranges and they were all from California! The roadside stands mustve started disappearing around then, as well.

[TearsOfDaClowned]

4. Perhaps vary location where you shop..

..write or spreadsheet the listed supplier(s) on your food... pick one product and buy a premium example at a high end or health food store or farmer's market or order from an online source... a small order on a single item shouldn't cost too much... Check out those little stores that sell flowers, farm produce...there may be one you regularly drive by and don't even notice.

One last thing ..investigate CSA's in your area you may find several at the local farmer's market.

[Irish_Dem]

5. It is hit or miss.

I have to check various stores to see which ones have decent produce.
I love blackberries and sometimes they are pretty bad.

[Diamond_Dog]

14. Hit and miss and I suppose it depends on where you live.

[Irish_Dem]

15. Last year it was much more consistent.

I am noticing the problems this spring.

[cadoman]

32. agree it's more hit and miss than ever

Part of that is we've come to expect fruits all season, so of course those are a bit odd. And many things are packaged up by say, Driscoll, but it's very clear there's no commonality to it.

There are some exceptions: I seem to be able to consistently find great oranges, lemons, and tomatoes.

[chowmama]

6. Most fruits don't improve after they're picked, so shipping unripe is a recipe for tasteless.

I got into an exchange at my grocery last year when the display/demo woman tried to convince me to buy hard peaches. I told her that peaches weren't supposed to be crunchy. She got on the highest of high horses and insisted that "Yes, they were!!!".

There are some things I just don't buy anymore.

[Diamond_Dog]

9. I love fresh peaches and am very fussy about them.

July and August at a farm market are the only way I will spend $ on peaches. That woman that said they’re supposed to be crunchy is an idiot!

[Diamond_Dog]

11. Agree with you, some things I just don't buy anymore, either.

[chowmama]

93. Well, this was the same lady I had a later interaction with.

I was passing when a guy was trying to get her to tell him which, of the produce she was shilling that day, was better than the others. She just kept chirping "Oh, honey, they're all good!".

I passed and said, under my breath, "For the same size, heavier is better.". His head whipped up and he said "Ok, thanks!". And her head whipped around and she said "Really?".

I don't think she cooks.

[cachukis]

8. Been getting mangoes from Peru. Letting them

ripen. Quite good. Now from Mexico, a bit different, but good.
Florida strawberries were sweet this year. A few pounds in freezer for smoothies. Pears from South America have been good.
Last year Georgia peaches were not so good, but South Carolina were. Been stocking up on frozen Wymans blueberries from Maine. Low bush. Sweet.
Had some good peaches from California last year.
Bananas, I let ripen and have been great on cereal and smoothies.
I have Publix and markets.
Paying a bit more, but enjoying my fruit.

[Lochloosa]

34. GA had a horrible year for peaches.

Peaches require a certain amount of cold days in the winter and Georgia didn't get enough. That's why the SC peaches were better.

[cachukis]

49. Yes. I'm a peach guy. We travel back roads as we

leave Florida in late spring.

[Lochloosa]

54. N. FL here. I love a good GA peach.

[Diamond_Dog]

83. Here in NE Ohio we have great peaches in August!

Columbiana peaches. The season is very short, though.

There are some good peach orchards in PA as well. Also very short season.

GA peaches have not been good for a while. What a shame.

[multigraincracker]

10. They come frozen, but I love the local store brand

frozen wild blue berries. Best flavor.

[a kennedy]

12. BECAUSE IT COMES FROM LANDS FAR, FAR AWAY.

seriously……..they have to treat it for rail, and truck delivery, so of course it loses its flavor……ugh..

[Diamond_Dog]

16. I hear ya! It just seems to be getting worse!

Apples, cherries, …. my grandmother had fruit trees in her yard. They were the absolute best.

[thatdemguy]

106. This and picked early so it does not rot when being shipped.

[thought crime]

17. America's decline started with frozen orange juice.

I can remember the exact moment, in the early 1960’s when I was about 10 years old, and realized how crappy artificial and frozen orange juice really is. That was the beginning of the end. And here we are.

[Diamond_Dog]

19. If you've ever tasted fresh squeezed OJ, there's no comparison.

[mwmisses4289]

53. I have had fresh squeezed o.j.

It was bitter nasty stuff. The first time, i thought it was a fluke. But nope. Tried it a few more times, same bitter nasty flavor. Yuk.

[Demobrat]

45. That's not orange juice.

It’s orange sugar water.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

73. I hate most orange juice

Frozen or from concentrate It has a bitter sour taste and no sweetness doesn’t even taste like an orange

[mopinko]

20. around here there r small fruit markets.

the big chains have cold storage warehouses where the put the fruit to sleep until they need it. the little stores go to the market district every morning to get fresh picked.
it used to be just a few things. peaches and tomatoes have sucked for a long time. now it’s everything. these little places r not only better, they’re much cheaper.

[Diamond_Dog]

21. I won't see fruit stands around here until around June and they seem pricier to me

But if the fruit is good at least you’re not wasting your money.

[elleng]

29. JUNE gets us local STRAWBERRIES!!!

[mopinko]

46. well, way more money goes to the farmers.

no or few middle men. and usually small enough operations that they arent practically slavers.

and a tip- get a dehydrator and dry those fresh fruits. even dried, they taste better than what u buy at the stores. tomatoes & peppers, too. i love to dry my tomatoes, cuz when u use them, it’s like using paste. makes thick sauces w/o boiling them down.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

22. I am so sorry to hear this sad news, my dear Diamond_Dog.

I haven't bought supermarket produce in a very long time. As you know, I get mine from year-round farmer's markets. There IS a difference!

Sometimes our supermarket has good tomatoes from Mexico and they are good.

I wish you had better choices!

[Diamond_Dog]

24. I'll just have to go to the market with you, Peggy!

[Shipwack]

35. The thing I miss most about central California is the super-fresh fruit.

For those that don't know, any fully (or over) ripe fruits and vegetables have to stay in state and local because they can't travel without being damaged.

I dream about those strawberry festivals... ::sigh::

[brush]

23. Apples, too. Especially red delicious ones. They haven't tasted good for years.

Some of it is seasonal. Best to buy them in season or you get ones from foreign countries. And now there's the supply chain thing.

[Diamond_Dog]

25. Oh yeah, red delicious apples are bleh. I'm surprised anyone buys them.

[mopinko]

47. they used to b.

apples def get put to sleep in cold storage. they last a long time in those warehouses.

[Ocelot II]

28. "Delicious" apples aren't.

Look for Honeycrisp or SweeTango or First Kiss. Haralson for pies.

[brush]

30. Delicious ones aren't. Thanks for the tips on the others.

Last edited Mon Apr 28, 2025, 10:28 AM - Edit history (1)

[Diamond_Dog]

31. Thanks, Ocelot. I have become a regular buyer of organic Honeycrisp.

Never seen Haralson … must be native to your area.

[Tadpole Raisin]

55. My first taste of a Honeycrisp apple was a real revelation!

It’s been hit or miss since then.

There was a guy years ago going around New England searching for old forgotten and thought to be extinct Apple tree varieties so he could save them. I haven’t thought about that in years.

So many previously classic varieties of fruits or vegetables gone in favor of the easy to grow and harvest variations. High production and mass distribution - thought to be a supposed savior decades ago. Look what it has brought us!

[elleng]

26. I agree. ;-(

[riverbendviewgal]

27. I like frozen fruit.

They taste great. They don't spoil.

[jmbar2]

33. Buy when in season, local if possible.

Also, if you live around Mexicans, shop where they shop. They are very choosy about their fruits.

[OldBaldy1701E]

36. Frankenfruit. (n/t)

[AloeVera]

37. Yes, sadly.

Still looking for peaches that taste the same as in my youth.

Aside from green-picking, pesticides and treatment for transport, I can think of two more reasons. All that genetic modification must have borne bitter fruit so to speak. And, the soil having lost so much of its nutrient value due to humans mucking around in various ways and killing it. Less nutrients, less taste. Less harvest too. As if that weren't depressing enough that also has huge implications for our ability to nourish ourselves and feed the world's growing population.

[Diamond_Dog]

39. Yes, I agree with you on all counts.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

74. Add in the fact

Soil depletion is happening that can cause less nutrients and less shelf life for fruits and veggies

[Warpy]

38. Most of it is being picked very green and hard as a rock

so it will survive shipping, get sprayed with ethylene gas, and hit the grocery shelves looking picture perfect----and tasting like cardboard.

You want to taste peaches, get them in cans. Other fruits are OK frozen, better than "fresh," anyway. It's either that or grow your own.

[Diamond_Dog]

40. Meijers' carries organic peach cups which suffice until I can get real peaches.

Peaches and cottage cheese …. 😋

[Warpy]

68. How nice for them

Too bad there aren't any around here.

[3catwoman3]

41. Watermelon chunks have been consistently disappointing for quite some time.

No flavor oftener than not.

[GP6971]

102. Shouldn't there be a third observation?

[3catwoman3]

107. What did I miss?

[GP6971]

108. Just a run of the mill troll. A cheap

flyswatter usually does the trick!!

[Buddyzbuddy]

42. I've notice most of the produce has suffered, recently.

Especially lettuce.

[Cheezoholic]

43. Most of what you get at regular monopolized grocery's are clones of a particular plant and are artificially pollinated

Just those 2 aspects of what ends up being the fruiting part of the plant have a big influence on flavor. There's a reason the stuff on these mega grocer's shelves have been looking exactly the same for decades. The stuff in my garden will blow away Kroger crap in a nano second when it comes to flavor. Just because it wasn't made in a factory doesn't mean it didn't come off a production line.

[Annie Moosee]

44. not just you...

I found out that even apples are picked before ripe. Tomatoes are picked so green, they bounce when they fall. it's pretty awful.

[Bayard]

48. You're right

I've been disappointed in grocery produce for a long time.

I've already planted several dwarf fruit trees, blueberries, grapes, and raspberries. Won't see anything off them this year, but next year should be good. My watermelons and cantaloupes are usually pretty good.

I am still wondering if I have all my taste buds back from my Covid bout though.

[Arkansas Granny]

50. Much of the produce in stores is grown for looks (not taste) and

because it ships well. Just because those berries look luscious doesn't mean they taste good.

[bucolic_frolic]

51. Organic

Take those blueberries and spray them with detergent, or watered-down organic shampoo if you can make it, then tumble a little and rinse. Great for tomatoes too, which are coated in food-grade parafin wax. Good too for leafy green like kale, collards, broccoli.

Organic bananas have better flavor in my view.

[BoRaGard]

52. industrial fruit and vegetables taste like industrial fruit and vegetables

"Shut up you stupid proles, and eat your damn vege-rations." - G.O.P. Fascist-Industrial-Krypto Bros

[moniss]

57. So much of the produce is

rushed and pushed with lots of water. It's not just you. You are wise tot ry and buy locally especially berries, green items and root vegetables. Knowing your seasons and picking your growers will pay dividends in flavor and nutritional value. I also encourage you, if you eat eggs, to find them locally as well. Big difference in flavor and in baking. Also you can line up on local chickens.

The last store bought whole chicken I got was swimming in liquid in the plastic wrap, was tender enough but had absolutely zero chicken flavor.

[bamagal62]

58. Not only do the

Fruits taste like water, they rot very quickly. Strawberries last about a day and a half.

[Diamond_Dog]

59. I've noticed that, too, nothing lasts beyond 1-2 days.

[RandomNumbers]

62. Best to buy fresh fruit IN SEASON, relatively locally.

(N.B. to some extent this is "do as I say not as I do", although I do try , when I can)

I've been addicted to blueberries for awhile now so those I get from wherever I can, but I noticed that the quality of the imported ones wavers and particularly falters around this time of year. The local-ish ones I can't even get at this time of year. But I do check labels and get local when they come in season. Also, I know some natural and co-op stores near me usually have better quality. That's an extra trip but I'll do it when I can fit it in and know that the big-chain grocery store fruit will be crappy this time of year.

Luckily I like apples and I haven't seen any issue with getting good quality apples all year round.

[Diamond_Dog]

63. I love apples and usually eat one every day.

I buy organic Honeycrisps, 90% of the time they’re good, once in a great while you get a few mushy ones in the bag. No problems with availability (so far).

Can you use frozen blueberries? I went through a phase where I ate crushed up frozen blueberries which I heated up in the microwave and then put on top of a Kashi waffle. The frozen ones seem to have more flavor than the fresh ones.

[RandomNumbers]

64. good suggestion, but

frozen blueberries don't really fit my morning routine. I *really* like fresh blueberries. They usually have plenty of flavor for me - I have sensitive taste buds. (with very few exceptions, I don't add salt to anything - that plus not smoking probably has kept my taste buds in top shape.)

[GreenWave]

65. Homegrown, nothing compares to you!

Strawberries are coming in from the field. They do not taste like the red cardboard imitation ones at the store.

[Kali999]

66. Fruit

Like peaches and pears ripen in a paper bag. Helps to have apple or riper fruit to throw in. I don't like rock hard peaches either. Or mangoes that rot instead of ripen. The bag works pretty good.

[Emile]

69. My garden strawberries and blueberries taste a hundred times better

than store bought.

[Vinca]

70. I totally agree with you. Blueberries and strawberries are particularly lousy. The citrus has been okay for

the most part, as have apples. Mostly it's the berries. Yech.

[Diamond_Dog]

71. Yes, the citrus still tastes good. We continue to buy oranges and mandarins

They are mostly from California.

[GP6971]

75. Well, Hi Sunshine!!! Many people don't go to

the Library like you do to "educate" themselves.

[mcar]

85. Hmm

I live in Florida. Strawberry season has just ended. Blueberry season has just begun.

They are delicious.

[womanofthehills]

90. I grow everbearing strawberries

So they have a long season.

The south side of my house is mostly all windows - so I grow cherry tomatoes & greens indoors all winter long. Summers here are so hot for tomatoes so my winter indoor crop is the best. One of my friends has mini led grow lights and grows greens on her kitchen counter.

I have an apple & apricot tree and have never eaten one piece of fruit off either. The birds (country living) eat them all before they are ripe.

[NewHendoLib]

94. it's just you. It is always just about you. Pathetic.

[GP6971]

103. Me thinks someone "got under your skin"! EYBS!!!!

[NewHendoLib]

104. LOL! See - you do love me;

[TommieMommy]

76. Yes, the strawberries are not like they used to be

They look ok but they don't smell or taste like they should. What are they doing to our fruit and vegetables 😡 even orange juice isn't good anymore.

[Maninacan]

77. Taste

Strawberries are too large don't taste good. Potato's are all poor quality, always cut up , every single one.

[KT2000]

78. Try a comparison between regular and organic

I have done this with strawberries, bananas, and broccoli. Organic wins in flavor.

[Diamond_Dog]

80. I do try to buy organic whenever possible!

[womanofthehills]

91. Organic definitely tastes better to me too

Plus some fruits have so many pesticide residues - I will only eat organic. Plus organic is grown in healthier soil which equals more flavorful food. Organic mangos from Mexico are usually pretty delicious.

[IrishBubbaLiberal]

79. Most major US grocery stores have CRAPPY tasteless produce

It’s been that way for decades.

Pulpy fresh peaches, lack flavor.
Hard as a rock peaches.

Tomatoes that taste like cardboard.
Even the Heirloom tomatoes are shitty they sell now.

Oranges that are all pulp, and thick skin.
Hardly any juice.

Berries that have no flavor.
Strawberries especially, the taste is gone.

SO THIS IS WHAT I DO NOW….

Try to go to Farmers Markets
Try to get there extremely early to get the Heirloom Tomatoes
various varieties like Cherokee Purple, Mortgage Lifter.

Buy strawberries only when in season,
that’s the only way to get the real flavor I demand.

Buying blueberries that really taste good is hit and miss.
Depends on source, depends on time of year.
Lots of Texas blueberry growers now.
It’s somewhat OK, but not like the wild berries

Watermelon. Well I have ever figured out how to
guarantee picking a tasty watermelon.
Depends on time of year, where that melon was grown.
All those tiny watermelons now sold are crappy.
Give me a GOOD LARGE EAST TEXAS WATERMELON grown in that
Red Dirt, Sandy Loam THAT WILL USUALLY GET YOU A WONDERFUL
WATERMELON

and good ripe Cantaloupe is hit and miss too.

US grocery stores just suck at providing good tasting produce
They care mainly about providing product that looks good,
And can ship easily, and decent shelf life.
AND THAT MY FRIENDS IS ALMOST ALWAYS INCOMPATIBLE WITH
TASTY PRODUCE

[Ritabert]

81. And there were NO bananas at the supermarket 2 days ago

"Supply Cain issues" was on a sign.

[Diamond_Dog]

82. Ha ha Supply Cain

[Ritabert]

97. Oops. I meant "chain".

[Captain Zero]

84. Cosmic Crisp apples are Crap

Worst tasting apple I ever tried. I guess they thought the name would overcome the product. Luckily I only bought two. I need to pick up some caramel dip to be able to eat the second one. After I cut out the brown spots I expect to find inside it like the first one.

[Diamond_Dog]

86. Oh, I know this!

I sent Mr. Diamond to the store last fall and among other things asked him to get some Honeycrisp apples. Well he came home with Cosmic Crisp. Said he kinda forgot what I wanted but knew it had the word Crisp. And no, he never remembers to take or use his cell phone either.

Well, those Cosmic Crisp were so bad we gave them to the animals! Just inedible! It’s become a family joke now. “Remember! HONEY Crisp! Not COSMIC Crisp!”

[KT2000]

87. Really?

I love them. They have the tart flavor the trees in my youth produced.
Maybe the ones you got were old. I live where they are grown so always in perfect shape.

[Diamond_Dog]

98. Sorry! Yes they were terrible.

They were crisp, but the flavor was just awful. Not tart, sweet, or anything in between. Just a very strange taste. They were organic, sold in a bag of 6.

[pansypoo53219]

96. i prefer fr wild blueberries for my tarts, but big ones on sale. flavor but so mushy. fr it is. but i got envy apples

+ sugarbee apples on sale + the envy had flavor + was very juicy. navel oranges ok, but dammed if i peel any. i like grapefruit best + still ok. lemons when grapefruits over, wait for summer grapefruit.

[applegrove]

109. Tariffs?

[ProfessorGAC]

110. Tomatoes!

Used as a vegetable, but botanically a fruit.
They taste nothing like they used to, unless we get a shipment of locally grown heirlooms.
The taste isn't close to what it once was. Less intense, less natural sweetness.
The farmstands here, in August in September are a pleasant exception, but in general they just aren't as tasty.