It seems to be a self-contradictory article.Originally Posted by R2L
A good point was made that fruits/vegetables chosen for freezing are typically picked ripe, whereas vegetables chosen for market are typically picked just before they're ripe, but then the article admits that the initial heating devalues the water-soluble vitamins in the ripe fruits/vegetables. And, although it claims freezing "locks-in" the remaining nutrients, the truth is (if you really research the subject of freezing) all the cells in the item get destroyed by standard freezing. [For example, this is why you cannot just "freeze" live semen; it has to be frozen using special liquid nitrogen techniques; otherwise, the sperm cells are ruptured and die through standard freezing. For the same reason, you cannot just "freeze" a DNA sample in the freezer for cloning; those cells likewise will be destroyed, which again is why special liquid nitrogen techniques need to be used.]
Further, if the fruits/vegetables that get transported to market lose some value in the "picked-before-ripe" / "shipped-to-market" process, then it sure isn't doing them any more good to be freezing these vegetables on top of that!
As the article said, "Bottom line: When vegetables are in-season, buy them fresh and ripe."
And, as regards to frozen, it said: "... over many months, nutrients in frozen vegetables do inevitably degrade."
Well, again, the freezing process itself degrades, and a way around buying mass-produced bulk fruits/vegetables that were picked before they were ripe at the store, is to buy your fruits/vegetables locally from local farmers. You don't necessarily have to have your own farm; you can just buy from your local farmers directly.
Well, you can think what you want, but try freezing your dog's semen by conventional means and see if it doesn't make a "big difference" as to the likelihood of conception
At the end of the day, it is exactly as I said back in the beginning: feeding truly raw vegetables is BEST. There is no knowledgeable person who will disagree with this. However, freezing is more convenient, and while it degrades the food item a bit (and will continue to do so the longer it is frozen), freezing will retain more nutrients than "kibbling" will. But it will never have the same nutritive value as it did fresh and raw.
Jack
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