Rows of fresh fruits and vegetables at Farm’s Fresh grocery store.
There are three main ways to obtain local produce: 1) grow it yourself, 2) acquire it from a local grower, 3) purchase it from a supermarket near you that buys from the local growers. I’ve already mentioned one local Islamabad farm by name in Out of the Darkness, Into Islamabad’s Farmland and also touched upon eating directly from the local street vendors in Local Fruit Made Available via a Seamless Supply Chain. Now, what about those grocery stores? Well, it seems as if the trend in Pakistan is to sell locally grown produce as well. The first (and only) supermarket we went to during our ten-day stay was one popularly called “Farm’s Fresh: Fruits & Vegetables.” Inside, there was an entire wall lined with rows of just that: fresh fruits and veggies. Notable differences in what was to be found? For starters, carrots in Pakistan are not orange but red. It took me going to that grocery to realize that all of the carroty-tasting red pieces in my food had not been tomatoes nor bell peppers but in fact, carrots. Also, limes are the size of quarters and perfectly round, rather than large and ovular like in America— perfect for slicing in two and serving on the side of a spicy dish or on the rim of a glass. With that trip to Farm’s Fresh, the circle of purchasing food in Islamabad had truly been made complete.
-Serena