Who Decided Seedless is Best?

OP,

You might be surprised to know (or maybe not) that of all the criteria used in the “manufacture” of “fresh” fruit and vegetables by our industrial food system, taste is either at the bottom of the list or doesn’t even make the cut and this admission comes from the food companies themselves.

The hybrid varieties that are shipped thousands of miles and offered to you at the grocery store were developed because they travel well, meaning that they still “look” like food when they arrive at the supermarket. Taste has little to do with it.

I suspect that your seedless watermelons fall into this category. Aside from it’s other dubious qualities (from the eater’s point of view), the “seedless” feature was obviously higher in priority than the actual taste.

Another little known factoid: the nutritional content of many common fruits and vegetables has fallen dramatically in the last forty years. Some believe the culprit is again the industrial food system in which crops are grown in a basically inert soil matrix long devoid of natural fertility. Farmland in most places has been so degraded in quality that you couldn’t grow a single bean plant without a massive infusion of chemical fertilizers.

If you would like to expose your taste buds to food that is still delicious, including watermelons, try planting your own or buy locally from a market gardener who still grows real food.

I can guide you to some local dealers who traffic in this sort of thing.