So named because it belongs to the lily and rose family, Garlic has held an important place in the medicinal and cultural roots of almost every major civilization on Earth over the past three to four thousand years. Romans fed garlic to their soldiers to make them courageous. Egyptian slaves built the pyramids on a diet of garlic, bread and water. Clay models of garlic have been found in various Pharaoh’s tombs. Ancient Greek brides carried bouquets of garlic and other herbs (instead of flowers), and South Korea’s creation mythology is based on their native black garlic.

Garlic has as many as 100 compounds that are chemically active. There are currently as many as 1,000 different pharmacological studies being done to explore the benefits of garlic – especially its affects on cardiovascular disease and cancer. The anti-bacterial substance allicin in garlic has been shown to protect cells from cancer-causing substances and slow the spread of cancer. Garlic also has anti-oxidant and anti-bacterial properties. In fact, freshly pressed garlic extract (even when highly diluted) has been shown to not only kill bacteria but also to kill some drug-resistant strains of bacteria.

There are about 300 varieties of garlic in the world today. Garlic is thought to have originated somewhere between Central Asia and Siberia. Besides the rare South Korean black garlic, there is also a single clove garlic called Pearl or Solo garlic which originated in Yunnan province, China.

April 19th is National Garlic Day. Chicago got its name from the Native American word “chicagaoua” for the wild garlic that grew around Lake Michigan. And yes, even Popeye used to gain his supernatural strength from sniffing garlic before he switched to popping cans of spinach. However, garlic wasn’t always popular in the U.S. During the 1920s, it was referred to as Bronx Vanilla, Halitosis, and Italian Perfume. By the 1940s, U.S. foodies ‘discovered’ and popularized garlic.

While there are many more interesting, positive tid-bits about Garlic, there is also a very dark and dangerous side to Garlic as a global commodity.

One question many of us ask about goods we buy is how was it made or grown and where does it come from. As it turns out, these are very important questions to ask about garlic… ie: the garlic that’s in all of the processed foods we buy, or in the food at restaurants, in grocery stores, etc… Many people’s first reaction is “Gilroy!” After all, Gilroy is the “Garlic Capital of the World,” right?

Gilroy may be the “Garlic Capital of the World,”
and California may produce 90% of the garlic grown in the U.S. but,
the U.S. only produces 1.4% of the world’s garlic, and
China produces 77% of the world’s garlic,
so even though 90% of the garlic grown in the U.S. comes from California,
73% of the garlic consumed in the U.S. is grown in China.

Read that again if you like.

Okay, so almost three quarters of the garlic consumed in the U.S. travels six to seven thousand miles across the largest ocean on the planet to get to our dinner tables. That isn’t that bad is it?

Yet again, China can produce something (garlic) AND export it to our country for less than we can produce it locally – that is so disparaging! In fact, China can even grow, harvest AND dehydrate their garlic and export it to the U.S. for less than our cost to grow and harvest fresh garlic. As a result, nearly all U.S. grown garlic is sold to the fresh market with almost none of our local garlic being dehydrated, which is a shame because modern dehydration technology which is used in most countries is very efficient and clean. China, however, still exclusively uses coal fires to dehydrate their garlic for export. As we know, coal is extremely dirty to combust and contains numerous heavy metals and other toxic chemicals and compounds. Independent 3rd party testing in the U.S. has repeatedly found that Chinese imported, dehydrated garlic contains up to 2,900% more lead, 2,840% more added sulfites and 586% more arsenic than California grown and dehydrated garlic. In fact, the levels of lead exceed European Union food standards by 300% and the levels of arsenic exceed E.U. standards by 500%. However, the U.S. and Europe have no restrictions on the importation of dehydrated garlic from China.

What is dehydrated garlic from China found in? Nearly everything: from pasta sauces to chips, salsa, prepared dinners and prepackaged foods of all kinds and… in your spice rack. The dehydrated garlic powder that was tested came from these processed food products as well as national brand and supermarket brand garlic powders such as Safeway, Lucky, Raleys, etc. So check your labels on your spice jars and your food packages to find out if it says California grown garlic or not.

As for fresh garlic, it is somewhat easier to spot the difference between CA grown and Chinese imported (or Argentinian imported – also thousands of miles away). California grown garlic tends to still have the roots on the bottom of the bulbs whereas imported garlic is cleanly shaven of most if not all roots. Also, California-grown fresh garlic is heavier than the average imported bulb because of a higher density of soluble plant solids and lower water content. This is measured with a Brix test, and CA fresh garlic routinely scores a 40 out of possible 40 whereas Chinese fresh garlic scores a 28 out of 40. This means that you are getting many more of the important micronutrients, amino acids and vitamins from CA grown fresh garlic than from imported garlic. The Brix test results also translate into higher quality and flavor, which is the third and final way to tell domestic from imported fresh garlic: California-grown fresh garlic has a richer and more complex flavor than its imported counterpart.

Lastly, as we learn about food production in the age of globalization, and we learn the value of ecologically farmed, locally grown, produce, we therefore have to get reacquainted with seasonality – and locally grown garlic will be arriving at your Farmers’ Markets and Supermarkets beginning any week now. First, we’ll have green garlic (early harvested bulbs) during April, followed by a brief window of locally harvested garlic scapes in mid May, followed by the bulk of the annual Garlic harvest in June and July. This California grown garlic has a storage life of up to 6 months, so look for California grown garlic from May or June until next January or February. However, from late winter through early spring, the only garlic bulbs that can be found in the northern hemisphere have been grown in the southern hemisphere (typically Argentina). So while you may not want to buy garlic bulbs grown and harvested 7,000 miles away in Argentina, it will be well worth the very short wait for our local farmers to begin harvesting their myriad varieties of delicious, healthy, and nutrient dense garlic. We’ll see you at the Farmers’ Market!

(c) 2011 Paul Kaiser

Paul Kaiser is a leader in ecological agriculture who was recently recognized with an international award for his work in biodiversity and pollinator conservation on his farm, Singing Frogs Farm. Paul served in the Peace Corps in The Gambia, West Africa. He worked with several rural agrarian communities to develop sustainable land use management systems, turning degraded lands into economically viable and biologically diverse and resilient farmland. Since then Paul has received dual Masters Degrees in Natural Resources Management and Sustainable Development from the United Nations University for Peace in Costa Rica and the American University in Washington D.C. In the last five years, Paul and his wife Elizabeth, have married sustainable land management with local food production at their biodiverse and family friendly  Singing Frogs Farm in Sebastopol.