Fresh Culinary Herb Trend Picks up Steam

Fresh herbs are a natural way to add extra flavor to all your dishes and are more popular than ever. Home cooks who want to use a small amount of fresh herbs on a daily basis are finding that culinary herb plants are great to keep on hand.

Shenandoah Growers, located in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, began 20 years ago with a vision of bringing fresh culinary herbs to the Eastern United States. Today, the company is a small business success story, recognized as a leading provider of fresh herbs in the United States and specializing in supplying retail grocery stores.

Committed to being part of America’s healthy food trend, Shenandoah Growers promotes the idea that fresh herbs are the simplest, freshest and healthiest way to transform the taste of food naturally.

Sarah Yoder, senior marketing manager with the company, has noticed an increase in sales and the variety of fresh herbs being purchased by consumers. She recommends that home cooks keep herbs in their kitchens to help flavor foods.

“We are trying to educate consumers on the fact that herbs do not have to be just for gourmet cooks,” Yoder said. “If you have them on hand either on the kitchen countertop or in the refrigerator, it is very easy to take a few minutes, pull the leaves off, chop them up and add them at the end of cooking.”

Awareness about using fresh herbs is growing, but there is still a lot of market potential in the U.S.

“Europeans have long used fresh herbs in plant form in the kitchen,” Yoder said. “We are starting to see that trend in the United States pick up a little bit. We believe there is a lot of potential because it allows consumers to have fresh plants in their home and they can harvest the herbs and know that they are still alive, full of the oils and aromas to flavor food.”

And most cooking enthusiasts agree that if a recipe calls for ¼ cup or more of a chopped variety, fresh-cut rather than dried herbs yield better results. 

For recipes, hints and tips on using fresh herbs, visit www.freshherbs.com.