Magazines...

Why do I already have the April issue of Delicious???  It's only 18 March, which means I still have 13 days to cook the remaining 4 recipes I want to make from the March edition, but the April edition has turned up and is very tempting.

I don't know why magazines are published on this month ahead schedule.  I read:

"Say your monthly magazine reaches newsstands on the 5th of each month. Do you call the issue that comes out on 5th of July the July issue? No, because there's a risk that come 1 August, the July issue will be cleared off the shelf and your magazine won't be on sale for at least five days until the August issue arrives. Dating a month ahead ensures your magazine is on the stands until the next issue comes out. That's why magazines are dated a month ahead." (source)

Ok, so the date printed on the cover means that the contents are current from when you buy the magazine (in the previous month) to the end of the month printed on the cover?  Well, not in my opinion.  Particularly in relation to food magazines.

We're all becoming more obsessed with seasonality, and using local produce.  When a magazine is advertised for 'April' I expect that ingredients in season in April will be featured.  However, this does not seem to be the case. For example, asparagus is in season in 'Summer'.  Sure, there can be arguments as to when summer begins and ends, but April is not summer.  Why is asparagus featured in the April issue.  Not only is out of season produce more expensive, it also tastes worse (assuming it is old stock) or has travelled a long distance.

In terms of fashion magazines I can almost understand why they date the magazine a month ahead.  Fashion shows etc are done at specific times of the year (NY fall fashion week is 11-18 Feb) but those clothes won't be in shops for a while - weeks or months depending on the hemisphere in which you live. 

Anyway, rant over.  I am left with a dilemma: not sure whether my rule should be to cook when the magazine arrives or when it is the actual month that is printed on the cover... thoughts?