Produce Name: Avocado

Availability: All Round the Year

The avocado is widely considered a vegetable, since it is commonly used in salads. However, it is actually a fruit that tastes like a vegetable. The fruit is harvested from tall trees, which grow in groves. The rich, pale yellow-green flesh of the pear-shaped fruit has a texture likened to a firm ripe banana, smooth and buttery, with a faintly nutty flavour. The fruit is primarily pear-shaped, but some varieties are also almost round.

Nutritional Facts
Avocados are a good source of Vitamin E, which is not only essential for the normal functioning of the body but is also a potent anti-oxidant which protects polyunsaturated fatty acids in cell membranes from free-radical attack. Free-radicals are linked to the beginnings of cancer and heart disease. Avocados also contain good amounts of Vitamin C (necessary for the production of collagen needed for the growth of new cells and tissues, prevents viruses from penetrating cell membranes, and also a powerful anti-oxidant), thiamine (converts carbohydrates to glucose to fuel the brain and nervous system), and riboflavin (helps the body to release energy from proteins, carbohydrates and fat). The avocado is also low in calories.