08/08/2026
Wild Maine Blueberries
Bowls of red and blue hues bring you the vibrant flavours and colours of summer, rich in protective phytonutrients and antioxidants that support your health on a cellular level. Wild blueberries, plums, raspberries, beets, red cabbage, borage, eggplant, potatoes, carrots, radicchio and tomatoes are just some of the seasonal fruits and vegetables that are abundant, flavourful and full of goodness right now.
Eating a wide variety of colourful, antioxidant-rich, high-fibre plant foods provides an abundance of vitamins, minerals, fibre and protective phytonutrients that work together to support a healthy gut microbiome, protect cells from oxidative stress, reduce chronic inflammation and help lower the risk of many chronic diseases.
It’s the peak of wild blueberry season here in Maine. Maine is the leading producer of wild blueberries in the United States, harvesting around 90 million pounds in a good season, although yields vary from year to year. While most people only ever get to enjoy frozen or dried wild blueberries, it’s such a treat to buy them fresh from local farms or, if you’re a forager, head out and harvest your own.
Wild blueberries are wild, not cultivated. They have evolved naturally over thousands of years in response to their environment rather than being bred for size, sweetness or yield. Like many wild plants, they produce an abundance of protective phytochemicals to help defend themselves against environmental stresses such as insects, UV exposure, changing weather and disease. Their naturally small size gives them a higher skin-to-flesh ratio, where many of these protective compounds are concentrated, making them one of nature’s most nutrient-dense berries.
Scatter your table with wild flavours and rich red and blue hues. This week’s recipes will help you make the most of the stunning variety of seasonal produce that’s abundant at the height of summer.
