Broccoli cartoon caption: "I say it's spinach and I say the hell with it." But noooo.
In point of fact, broccoli has been around since Roman times, when it was first recognized throughout the northern Mediterranean as a unique and valuable food. Today's vegetable is the result of careful breeding programs over the past 25 centuries; Italy and Spain are the two biggest producers, and broccoli has been one of the top vegetables (five pounds per person per year) since the early 1920s. You don't need Mom to tell you that broccoli is good for you; low in calories, high in fiber, etc. etc. Not to mention it tastes great, whether you eat it raw or cooked (steamed, stir-fried, etc.).
So it comes as a shock, a shock! to learn that a Dutch company, Enza Zaden, has bought what amounts to the rights to broccoli. Not the name, but the breeding program for broccoli seeds. (Enza Zaden is a 75-year-old global outfit that develops and breeds seed stock for vegetables. Corporate headquarters are in the tulip fields of Holland.) The seller was an American company, R&D AG, of Gilroy, Calif.
Says Enza Zaden's spokesman Jaap Masereeuw, "Breeding is our company's key concern. Our great strength is the combination of creativity, expertise and many years of experience in breeding programs."
Speaking for the seller, Robert Barham explained, "We are convinced that this will benefit the broccoli industry and everyone who enjoys eating broccoli - the king of healthy vegetables."
So there you have it. Broccoli doesn't grow on trees, it turns out. You have to plant it. Plant the seeds, that is. Fortunately, the Skagit Valley has about 1,500 acres of broccoli.
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