Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => The Knowledge => OT Knowledge => Topic started by: ABlipInContinuity on 05 June, 2008, 11:03:26 am
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I think (hope) I've posted this in the right spot. (On Edit: D'oh! That was meant to be in OT Knowledge!)
At the beginning of the year I sold the car and turned vegetarian/reduced reliance on meat products. The next step I intend to take is ending the onging love affair with Tesco.
My partner and I are very time pressured and that does make a once weekly/fortnightly trip to buy a bulk load of groceries from the supermarket (with the bike trailer) a huge convenience. And a tough habit to break off. We have started growing some of our own vegetables and herbs using containers in the back yard. (We don't have a garden right now :() and put our names on the waiting list for an allotment.
I have tried one or two local green grocers but I've been quite disappointed with quality of the produce. I have considered getting a delivery from box fresh organics (clicky (http://www.boxfreshorganics.co.uk/)). They could deliver to my work address which is in South Manchester but it seems a long way out for them.
Any further tips on reducing Supermarket reliance will be appreciated.
Thanks
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Moved it for you :)
This is a topic I'm interested in, too. I'm lucky in that I live in West London where there are a plethora of good, independent food stores.
But when I want cat food or washing liquid or something, it's hard not to go to bloody Tescos. I try to shop in the Co-op or Waitrose instead because they have much more ethical trading models. Shame Waitrose is so shockingly expensive...
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Moved it for you :)
This is a topic I'm interested in, too. I'm lucky in that I live in West London where there are a plethora of good, independent food stores.
But when I want cat food or washing liquid or something, it's hard not to go to bloody Tescos. I try to shop in the Co-op or Waitrose instead because they have much more ethical trading models. Shame Waitrose is so shockingly expensive...
Thanks!
You just made me thing about the amount of meet the dog must eat. As obvious as it is, that never occured to me before!!! I wouldn't put a dog on a vegetarian diet tho...
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Are there any local farmers' markets? There's quite a lot of stuff you can get in a pair of panniers...
We're spoiled here as we have a market in the TC twice a week. Very convenient as it's only about 5 mins by bike (or 20 if you have to walk (http://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=3065.0))
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Shame Waitrose is so shockingly expensive...
For example, they stock Duchy Originals soup...next to their own brand which is more expensive.
But you get what you pay for.
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Moved it for you :)
... it's hard not to go to bloody Tescos. I try to shop in the Co-op or Waitrose instead because they have much more ethical trading models. Shame Waitrose is so shockingly expensive ...
Is the expense a cost associated with these ethical trading models? Must it be absorbed by consumers who wish to support these models? Will it ever be negated?
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But you get what you pay for.
You do, it's true. If I'm shopping for posh dinner party food, then it's to Waitrose I go. I just can't afford to buy stuff from there regularly.
The Co-op is actually quite competitive on price, but you know that as much as possible of their stock is fairly traded and ethically produced.
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We get our veg & quite a lot of other things (tins, dry stuff, loo roll...) from an organic box scheme - The Organic Delivery Company. Organic food delivered to you. London, UK (http://www.organicdelivery.co.uk) (London only, I think, but Charlotte may be interested).
Other things (e.g. soya milk, fair trade OJ, Bourbon biscuits) come from, variously:
- Borough market (fruit, bread, extra veg, cheese, olive oil in refillable bottles, assorted tasty things)
- the Co-op down the road (soya milk, Marmite, fair trade OJ, Bourbon biscuits, rubber gloves, BEER)
- the independent corner-shop-supermarket next to it (assorted bits & bobs that the Co-op doesn't sell, like large jars of capers)
- the hippy wholefood shop in Greenwich (veggie sausages, nutritional yeast, soya mince in big bags, vegan cream cheese)
- the Indian supermarket in Brick Lane (5kg bags of rice, spices)
- the Chinese supermarket near Leicester Square (soy sauce, spices)
- very very occasionally, about once every two months, the Tesco across the park (soda crystals, a few unusual bits & pieces)
If you're going to do supermarket-type stuff, the Co-op is better than Sainsburys/Tescos/etc.
Aren't you commuting through Manchester regularly? Are there similar versions of any of the above that you could plan to go past on your way home?
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But you get what you pay for.
You do, it's true. If I'm shopping for posh dinner party food, then it's to Waitrose I go. I just can't afford to buy stuff from there regularly.
The Co-op is actually quite competitive on price, but you know that as much as possible of their stock is fairly traded and ethically produced.
The Co-ops down here in the SW tend to be uniformly dowdy and down-at-heel looking. Quite uninviting. It's a huge shame that they seem to be unable to capitalise on their USPs, and they have many. I still use my local one though. But it's always a worry that the predatory ways of Tesco and others will sink them.
To my shame I can't even think where the Co-op is in Ealing.
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FWIW, I have a hard time getting misty eyed about Waitrose.
True, their fruit & veg are mostly organic - but (in our Waitrose in Swaffham anyway) it's all from around the globe - hardly any local stuff at all. In contrast, the nearest Tesco (Dereham) has a wide range of In Season local produce.
Personally, I prefer Dereham farmers market or a Box Scheme. My Mum uses a box scheme, which is brilliant for her (she's blind and weakened by Osteoporosis, so couldn't exactly manage to haul a 25Kg bag of spuds up the hill from the shops); once a fortnight some happy pixies bring her a veritable skipload of goodies for not many ££s.
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Just buy stuff every day as you go past shops. Only takes 10 minutes on the way in, at lunch, or on the way home. Keep a list of what you need but don't go out to buy everything, just knock a few items off each day.
2kg of stuff in a pannier is not that noticable and if you do that every day you won't be dragging one haul of 28kg (or 56kg if you both do it) from a supermarket every 2 weeks.
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To my shame I can't even think where the Co-op is in Ealing.
South Ealing - about 500 yards south of the Tube station next to the Homebase.
It's actually quite comparable to Tesco Metro, just without the "Finest" stuff. Much more everyday food, which is mainly what I want.
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<snip>
Aren't you commuting through Manchester regularly? Are there similar versions of any of the above that you could plan to go past on your way home?
Thanks for that post Juliet.
There are plenty of Coops, some of them quite nice and we do use them a fair bit. There indian and chinese supermarkets. I'm sure there must be somewhere specializing in "low impact" foods.
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To my shame I can't even think where the Co-op is in Ealing.
South Ealing - about 500 yards south of the Tube station next to the Homebase.
It's actually quite comparable to Tesco Metro, just without the "Finest" stuff. Much more everyday food, which is mainly what I want.
Ah. Off our usual routes.
Off topic: if, when the sun is low and casting long shadows, you look above the fascia of Threshers in Northfield Avenue, you can just make out the word 'Co-opera...' under the paint.
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There indian and chinese supermarkets. I'm sure there must be somewhere specializing in "low impact" foods.
But not the Indian and Chinese supermarkets as it's mostly imported.....
And one of the reasons supermarkets in general did/do so well is the quality of the fruit and veg - a greengrocer buys from a wholesaler who buys from a market trader who buys from a producer. Supermarkets essemtially grow their own.
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FWIW, I have a hard time getting misty eyed about Waitrose.
Me too. I had to buy some more lamb when some friends announced they'd be joining us for dinner.
Waitrose being the nearest supermarket, I set off on my bike. All I could buy was bloody New Zealand lamb that had been flown around the world and had probably been muesled as well.
I want my lamb to come from Wales or North West England, not New Zealand!
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<Grumble> If you have the time to grow your veg etc. I 'd argue you are not that time-pressured Dan!!
Time-pressure for me/us means we occasionally run out of food :o and also rely on food delivery and late online shopping. We do the same for the veg box. Should be getting better soon though and I believe that we may have the time to go in person and shop more locally!
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Just buy stuff every day as you go past shops. Only takes 10 minutes on the way in, at lunch, or on the way home. Keep a list of what you need but don't go out to buy everything, just knock a few items off each day.
2kg of stuff in a pannier is not that noticable and if you do that every day you won't be dragging one haul of 28kg (or 56kg if you both do it) from a supermarket every 2 weeks.
This is pretty much what I do, I'd do it more except the supermarket most convenient for work is Waitrose and I can't afford to get everything from there, so every so often I will go to Sainsburys to fill up on tins etc.
Tooting is also good for fruit and veg and rice etc, I must go there more often.
I also keep meaning to try the anarchic 'Fareshare' food co-op place off the Walworth Road. You take your own containers for the rice etc so no packaging is wasted. They appartently also have a free bike workshop where people help each other fettle bikes, so they can't be bad. They're just open funny hours because they rely on volunteers which is why I never made it yet, need to make more effort.
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The Co-ops down here in the SW tend to be uniformly dowdy and down-at-heel looking. Quite uninviting.
Back before Sunday trading, the Co-op in my town (the only supermarket we have) used to turn the chiller cabinets off at weekends ...
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<Grumble> If you have the time to grow your veg etc. I 'd argue you are not that time-pressured Dan!!
Time-pressure for me/us means we occasionally run out of food :o and also rely on food delivery and late online shopping. We do the same for the veg box. Should be getting better soon though and I believe that we may have the time to go in person and shop more locally!
It doesn't take long to throw some compost in some tubs and push in some bulbs/plug plants!!!
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The Co-ops down here in the SW tend to be uniformly dowdy and down-at-heel looking. Quite uninviting.
Back before Sunday trading, the Co-op in my town (the only supermarket we have) used to turn the chiller cabinets off at weekends ...
This potentially could be a good energy saving measure if the cabinets are empty?
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I did this a couple of years ago - decided to see how much I could avoid using Tescos. I sat down and made a shopping-list of all the things we got from there, and worked out alternatives for most of them. There was a decent health food shop near my then-work, and a nearby farmers market on Thursdays, and Borough Market on Saturdays, and a Co-op not far from my house, and just about everything was gettable from one of those. It took a bit more organisation and planning, because instead of having a 24 hour supermarket available, market-ish stuff's only available certain days of the week. (But I am very disorganised, so being forced to be a bit more organised is good for me.)
I also keep meaning to try the anarchic 'Fareshare' food co-op place off the Walworth Road. You take your own containers for the rice etc so no packaging is wasted. They appartently also have a free bike workshop where people help each other fettle bikes, so they can't be bad. They're just open funny hours because they rely on volunteers which is why I never made it yet, need to make more effort.
Oh, that's reminded me that I keep wanting to check out there, too. I never seem to remember at a remotely sensible time or place, though. (And I am a bit worried that I'm not hippy enough.)
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Oh, that's reminded me that I keep wanting to check out there, too. I never seem to remember at a remotely sensible time or place, though. (And I am a bit worried that I'm not hippy enough.)
I have to admit, I have similar worries! I just need to get over it, get organised and cycle over there one day.
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Moved it for you :)
This is a topic I'm interested in, too. I'm lucky in that I live in West London where there are a plethora of good, independent food stores.
But when I want cat food or washing liquid or something, it's hard not to go to bloody Tescos. I try to shop in the Co-op or Waitrose instead because they have much more ethical trading models. Shame Waitrose is so shockingly expensive...
Shockingly expensive... or realistically priced? What most people don't realise is that much of our weekly shop is subsidised by the producers (through bulk buying and some dodgy business practices by the big four supermarkets).
In Waitrose, you're paying nearer the true cost of the item.
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Moved it for you :)
This is a topic I'm interested in, too. I'm lucky in that I live in West London where there are a plethora of good, independent food stores.
But when I want cat food or washing liquid or something, it's hard not to go to bloody Tescos. I try to shop in the Co-op or Waitrose instead because they have much more ethical trading models. Shame Waitrose is so shockingly expensive...
Shockingly expensive... or realistically priced? What most people don't realise is that much of our weekly shop is subsidised by the producers (through bulk buying and some dodgy business practices by the big four supermarkets).
In Waitrose, you're paying nearer the true cost of the item.
I'd venture their mark up is also better; less volume, better quality, higher mark up.
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Moved it for you :)
This is a topic I'm interested in, too. I'm lucky in that I live in West London where there are a plethora of good, independent food stores.
But when I want cat food or washing liquid or something, it's hard not to go to bloody Tescos. I try to shop in the Co-op or Waitrose instead because they have much more ethical trading models. Shame Waitrose is so shockingly expensive...
Shockingly expensive... or realistically priced? What most people don't realise is that much of our weekly shop is subsidised by the producers (through bulk buying and some dodgy business practices by the big four supermarkets).
In Waitrose, you're paying nearer the true cost of the item.
I'd venture their mark up is also better; less volume, better quality, higher mark up.
No, not hugely different, as Witrose have no shareholders and thus no dividend to worry about.
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I get my main shopping from a farm shop; they deliver once a week. It's very expensive, but I try to save money elsewhere. I use the local Tesco Metro for my top-up shopping.
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I have heard rumours of acquaintances of friends of gamekeepers who have lots of pheasant they find it hard to shift. Prices however are high, 20p a bird.
Through another source, Farm gate lamb, butchered to spec for about 40-50 per whole lamb.
I may be getting another freezer. And rabbit is cheap and plentiful.
..d
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Back before Sunday trading, the Co-op in my town (the only supermarket we have) used to turn the chiller cabinets off at weekends ...
This potentially could be a good energy saving measure if the cabinets are empty?
But in practice it just made shopping at the Co-op on a Monday a very smelly experience.
I'm curious about the original posting ...
... I sold the car and turned vegetarian ... The next step I intend to take is ending the onging love affair with Tesco.
... the next step along which particular path ?
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Shockingly expensive... or realistically priced? What most people don't realise is that much of our weekly shop is subsidised by the producers (through bulk buying and some dodgy business practices by the big four supermarkets).
In Waitrose, you're paying nearer the true cost of the item.
nearER possibly, but still a shocking markup.
eg. welsh lamb - farm price 1.50 / kg. Waitrose price 9.00 / kg.
that's HUGE margins for butchering, distributing and selling.
when lamb was cheaper at the farm gate, Dad (a sheep farmer) once had a huge barney in waitrose newmarket when he saw lamb he was selling at 30p / kg on sale for about 6 pounds / kg.
but yes, farmers hate dealing with tesco even more because they're absolutely horrible to suppliers.
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Why is that, though? If the model's efficient then they ought to be able to be nice instead of nasty. See, the problem with my local shops is that they're a damn sight less convenient. The butchers close at 4 and the stuff in the grocer is limp and bruised. They complain about the Tesco, but the Tesco offers me better stuff and has hours that I can make use of when I get back from work.
Methinks part of the solution isn't to boycott eebil supermarkets, but to encourage strong producer co-ops that get what their producers want.
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Why is that, though? If the model's efficient then they ought to be able to be nice instead of nasty. See, the problem with my local shops is that they're a damn sight less convenient. The butchers close at 4 and the stuff in the grocer is limp and bruised. They complain about the Tesco, but the Tesco offers me better stuff and has hours that I can make use of when I get back from work.
Methinks part of the solution isn't to boycott eebil supermarkets, but to encourage strong producer co-ops that get what their producers want.
Andy
The model is efficient in the same way that sweat shops are very efficient. Not sure where "nice" fits into this type of model.
Encouraging strong producer co-ops would be ethically sound, but ineffective since the producer would have to move from one to the other & there would need to be a market for the more expensive goods. Add to this that producer co-ops are never going to be as powerful as Wal-Mart, Tesco etc & it seems utterly futile.
I'm also intrigued with the idea that supermarkets are efficient. Looked at in a purely economic way, this is true, but virtually any other way of looking at it would give us a different answer (ruining countries economies & leaving thousands on subsistence wages & flying my food halfway round the world to get me food I don't need at a price below which I can afford doesn't seem very efficient to me).
Have you read Tescopoly, BTW?
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My customers tell me that Sainsburys are aggressive towards their suppliers, Tesco likewise, M&S becoming so. Waitrose supportive.
Almost off-topic, Halfords are also aggressive towards their suppliers.
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We get some stuff delivered from Goodness Direct - Online Health and Special Diet Food Store (http://www.goodnessdirect.co.uk/cgi-local/frameset/script/home.html)
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My customers tell me that Sainsburys are aggressive towards their suppliers, Tesco likewise, M&S becoming so. Waitrose supportive.
Almost off-topic, Halfords are also aggressive towards their suppliers.
Agressive is a bit of an understatement. Tesco forced me to go in to work some years ago on Boxing Day because a load of soup had not been delivered by my company and if I did not sort it they would not be ordering any more. Lovely people to deal with...NOT.
On another occasion the port of Felixstowe was shut due to high winds meaning we could not collect a couple of loads of tinned tomatos..Tesco's response..that is not our problem just get them delivered NOW !
They are arrogant, aggresive, unpleasant and if I never have to deal with them again it will be to soon.
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It's the attitude towards the suppliers that worries me as much as the environmental thing. Having read a lot of Monbiot's stuff about how the supermarkets operate, it's shocking. They make their suppliers conform to ever more stringent specs, obliging them to do all the work for them in washing, packaging and labeling the fruit and veg for instance.
If they then decide not to buy whatever it is from the supplier that week (say because it's not selling so well) then the supplier is left with a huge investment in producing a Tesco-spec product and a warehouse full of food that's not going to sell.
All the risk is passed to the supplier, to the point where they're terrified of offending the supermarket for fear of being put on a blacklist. Tescos have even been know to approach suppliers for charitable donations to cover fund raisers that they are asked to participate in. If the supplier doesn't cough up, then...
I buy most of my fruit and veg from the "Ealing Show Market" on the Uxbridge Road. it's run by a bunch of Afghan guys who go and buy up the cheap stock at the Western International Market down at Heathrow. When the supermarkets reject the stock for whatever reason (not to spec) then it gets sold off to the highest bidder.
I eat whatever is good and cheap that week and it's amazing what he gets. When Waitrose charge £2.99 for a punnet of physalis, I can have them for 99p for six. Strawberries, asparagus, you name it, they get it. Sometimes I see him peeling the supermarket labels off the packaging. It's terrible.
Sure, it's been air-freighted into the UK, but the karma is the supermarkets' and not mine. I'd not buy it directly from them. I supplement it with UK grown apples, potatoes and other stuff that I buy in the Co-op and elsewhere.
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Shockingly expensive... or realistically priced? What most people don't realise is that much of our weekly shop is subsidised by the producers (through bulk buying and some dodgy business practices by the big four supermarkets).
In Waitrose, you're paying nearer the true cost of the item.
nearER possibly, but still a shocking markup.
eg. welsh lamb - farm price 1.50 / kg. Waitrose price 9.00 / kg.
that's HUGE margins for butchering, distributing and selling.
when lamb was cheaper at the farm gate, Dad (a sheep farmer) once had a huge barney in waitrose newmarket when he saw lamb he was selling at 30p / kg on sale for about 6 pounds / kg.
but yes, farmers hate dealing with tesco even more because they're absolutely horrible to suppliers.
As well as the butchering, distributing and selling, don't forget the staff costs (Waitrose are good to their staff - there's always an overabundance of applicants for any job), infrastructure costs, etc.
I agree that farmers need a better deal for their produce - but we have to be realistic about what it actually costs to produce and distribute food. Agricultural subsidies have distorted the food market in most of the developed (and developing) world for so long that we no longer really understand the true costs of food.
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Today here is the local farmers' market. I shall wander down before lunch and pick up my fruit and veg.
There are at least four good bakers here. I haven't bought supermarket bread for years.
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I suspect most here are reasonably comfortable working/middle class folk, who are able to make these kinds of choices.
One or two members of my family have not been so fortunate in the way their lives have turned out, and they have very limited choices about where to shop. They can only ever afford supermarket "bread" - you know, the own brand, "Value" cotton-wool crap that's not really bread. They can only afford supermarket milk because milk via any other means is more expensive, and they've never ever been able to afford cars or holidays. For them, Tesco, Aldi and Lidl are as Good as It Gets - this isn't a habit for them, it's all they have.
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I am quite lucky to live very close to a Co-op which sells a wide variety of foods, sourced locally if possible, traided fairly and ethically. Behind my house is a farm selling local produce, pick your own etc but it is expensive and this means many families are unable to purchase their weekly supplies there. Also at the farm is an Eco Shop, selling washing up liquids, soaps, toothpastes, sanitary products, in fact just about every household item I might need.
I only go to Tesco if I absolutely have to, I find a lot of the staff rude and unhelpful.
Waitrose for me is a luxury as it is about 18 miles away and so I only visit there if I am in the town shopping for other items.
We have regular farmer's markets at the farm and also in the neighbouring town.
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I suspect most here are reasonably comfortable working/middle class folk, who are able to make these kinds of choices.
One or two members of my family have not been so fortunate in the way their lives have turned out, and they have very limited choices about where to shop. They can only ever afford supermarket "bread" - you know, the own brand, "Value" cotton-wool crap that's not really bread. They can only afford supermarket milk because milk via any other means is more expensive, and they've never ever been able to afford cars or holidays. For them, Tesco, Aldi and Lidl are as Good as It Gets - this isn't a habit for them, it's all they have.
Good point. Actually, I'm more in sympathy with the Lidl style of supermarket than the Tesco model.
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I suspect most here are reasonably comfortable working/middle class folk, who are able to make these kinds of choices.
One or two members of my family have not been so fortunate in the way their lives have turned out, and they have very limited choices about where to shop. They can only ever afford supermarket "bread" - you know, the own brand, "Value" cotton-wool crap that's not really bread. They can only afford supermarket milk because milk via any other means is more expensive, and they've never ever been able to afford cars or holidays. For them, Tesco, Aldi and Lidl are as Good as It Gets - this isn't a habit for them, it's all they have.
I spent five years on really crap pay in London - once rent, bills and council tax had come out, I could afford to eat and that was about it. Initially, I was buying cotton-wool bread, value beans etc because it seemed cheap. Then my friend Al and I decided to have a bit of a health revolution, both bought a bicycle, and started getting a small mixed box (http://www.abelandcole.co.uk/Shop.aspx?menu1=1&menu2=1) once a fortnight from Abel & Cole. It was a tenner at the time - so five quid a fortnight each. The only other things we bought were rice (cheap) and pasta (cheap), and milk / teabags etc. It worked out cheaper to eat proper food than our tesco value binging had been before. The small mixed box was enough to last two people a fortnight, although by the end of every fortnight we always seemed to have a surplus of beetroot!
Tesco has its place but food doesn't have to be expensive. Having said that, I still go to the supermarket if I'm having friends round and I need a large shop in one go without messing about too much.
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I also keep meaning to try the anarchic 'Fareshare' food co-op place off the Walworth Road. You take your own containers for the rice etc so no packaging is wasted. They appartently also have a free bike workshop where people help each other fettle bikes, so they can't be bad. They're just open funny hours because they rely on volunteers which is why I never made it yet, need to make more effort.
You don't know what hours they open, do you? I'd like to try this, as well.
ChrisS - I was about to make a similar point to Liz, having been in a very similar financial position for a few years. (And buying from grocers/markets, if you buy in season, can work out cheaper than the supermarkets - plus you're less likely to impulse buy.) It is, however, slightly more effort to eat real-food-cheap, and if you're working long hours for low pay, minding a family, often also having long travel times... then I agree it's not that straightforward.
IME buying decent bread isn't as much of an extra expense as it initially appears to be - because it actually fills you up, as opposed to the Tesco Value cottonwool stuff which is barely worth the chweing :-\ (So you pay more for one loaf, but you don't *need* as many loaves per week or whatever.)
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I solved the good-bread-is-expensive dilemma by not eating bread. Pasta and rice are both cheap, and are one area where Tesco Value isn't much worse than the posh stuff. Also: huge piles of mashed potato when you want a carb-fest.
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Almost all the bread we eat is made in our bread maker. It works out pretty cheap - less than 50p per large loaf I think and only takes about 5 minutes' work and it's really tasty bread. The problem with bread makers is that they take up a lot of surface space and don't fit conveniently under cupboards because with the lid open they are almost 2' high.
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I solved the good-bread-is-expensive dilemma by not eating bread. Pasta and rice are both cheap
It's a bit hard to make a sandwich with pasta or rice ;) :D
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I solved the good-bread-is-expensive dilemma by not eating bread. Pasta and rice are both cheap
It's a bit hard to make a sandwich with pasta or rice ;) :D
But possible with large slices of cooked potato. ;D
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I solved the good-bread-is-expensive dilemma by not eating bread. Pasta and rice are both cheap
It's a bit hard to make a sandwich with pasta or rice ;) :D
But possible with large slices of cooked potato. ;D
It could almost be the ultimate cycling snack (probably be a bit mushy though) :D
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Almost all the bread we eat is made in our bread maker. It works out pretty cheap - less than 50p per large loaf I think and only takes about 5 minutes' work and it's really tasty bread. The problem with bread makers is that they take up a lot of surface space and don't fit conveniently under cupboards because with the lid open they are almost 2' high.
I go through periods of making my own bread, but manually. It's a very satisfying task that I wouldn't want to automate. Otherwise my three preferred bakers are the Crusty Cottage in Tivvy, the Crusty Cob (no relation) in Honiton, and Parker's in Ealing, all of whom make superb bread.
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Chalk up another Abel and Cole customer, I've just signed up for a small mixed box once a fortnight.
Will I grow to love beetroot?
:D
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Why do you think I have so many raw beetroot recipes? ;D
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Will you help me eat it?
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I have a problem with Abel and Cole, 'cos I don't think they're very local - they still ship stuff all around the country (and from beyond, looking at some of the fruit they stock).
There is a farm shop very near me which does a veg box scheme, and I keep considering it, but (a) it seems silly for a man with a van to deliver a box when I could pick up the veg by bike if I left work half an hour early to get there before they shut, and (b) I'm not sure Tim and I could get through a boxful of their veg a week anyway because (c) we live near a town supermarket, and so pop in before it closes a couple of nights a week and we largely live on still-fresh-but-reached-its-sell-by-date vegetables for tenpence.
I have taken to buying free-range (and cheaper than the supermarket's) eggs from a market stall which sells produce from a local farm, and if ever I needed jam or marmalade I'd go there too (but I largely operate on the "trade" system and swap home-made jams with other friends, so I always have more preserves than I can eat anyway).
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Will you help me eat it?
If I can put carrot and caraway seeds and olive oil in it, thus completely emasculating* it as a beetroot, yes.
Do I have to grate it?
And if so, can I outstretch my beetrooty hands, glaze over my eyes and stagger elaborately round your kitchen pretending to be a zombie and scaring the cat?
*Or whatever the de-vegging equivalent may be.
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And if so, can I outstretch my beetrooty hands, glaze over my eyes and stagger elaborately round your kitchen pretending to be a zombie and scaring the cat?
The cat's got wise to you. Besides, he's a fully trained anti-zombie ninja attack cat :D
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In the North West we have Booths which is a sort of upmarket Waitrose with better local sourcing. To see the 24 different types of Lancashire cheese is a bit bewildering, Company Chairman Edwin Booth is a keen cyclist and the company has sponsored the round Windermere Time Trial. E H Booth & Co Ltd - Business in the Community (http://www.bitc.org.uk/membership/directory_of_members/e_h_booth_co_ltd.html)
Damon.
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Chalk up another Abel and Cole customer, I've just signed up for a small mixed box once a fortnight.
Will I grow to love beetroot?
:D
I believe it makes a pretty good hair dye when mixed with henna.
*Runs away*
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I have a problem with Abel and Cole, 'cos I don't think they're very local - they still ship stuff all around the country (and from beyond, looking at some of the fruit they stock).
They do. It's still closer than most of the Tescoids stuff, and they treat their suppliers better. It might not be such a good bet if you have a local farm shop, but in the People's Republic of Islington, they're a much better option than the alternatives which are Tescoids or lunatic expensive and not-always-accessible farmers' market.
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...lunatic expensive and not-always-accessible farmers' market.
Those profiteering Islington farmers, eh.
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I asked the Organic Delivery people about the shipping thing. They have this page: The Organic Delivery Company. Local organic food delivery to you. London, UK. (http://www.organicdelivery.co.uk/shopfront/where_from.php)
So yeah, What Liz Said.
I am happiest when we are eating off the allotment, which has food miles total about 0.5 & those on foot/bike :)
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Juliet, their opening hours are on their webpage FARESHARES: South London Food Cooperative (http://www.fareshares.org.uk/)
I can't get veg boxes delivered cos there is nowhere to leave one while I'm at work, and work would get sniffy if I got it delivered there regularly. It is a shame. But at least I'm not far from Brixton market or the posher Clapham Farmer's Market of a Sunday.
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Good point. Actually, I'm more in sympathy with the Lidl style of supermarket than the Tesco model.
Lidl and Aldi, thobut, have a long history of being beastly to their staff too (at least in Germany).
There is a small Co-op just up the road from me, but it seems mainly to be used by the local [<i>"Oiks" - The Invigilator</i>] for supplies of industrial-strength lager and alcopops.
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Good point. Actually, I'm more in sympathy with the Lidl style of supermarket than the Tesco model.
Lidl and Aldi, thobut, have a long history of being beastly to their staff too (at least in Germany).
In this country too, at least last year when this (http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2007/mar/14/businesscomment.supermarkets) report was written.
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It's a curious place Lidl. our Leyland branch has been open since 1999 and there are staff there who have been there for 9 years. They have to look after the store, tidying, cleaning, topping stock up, but not shelf stacking which is done by a mobile gang. It seems to suit a certain type of worker, someone who has worked in a self managing environment such as agriculture. The staff like to have a moan but they are actually very lively in comparison with Tesco which seems to zombify its staff. I find them intelligent and chatty. The pay is also good, especially Aldi which is currently paying £7.95 an hour for store staff. Lidl has an organic range and a Fairtrade range. A feature of the stores are very low staffing rates. There will be 3 people in the shop as opposed to 200 in a big Tesco so there is nowhere to hide if you don't like to work.
Damon.
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I do like Lidl stuff but I did feel sorry for the staff of the one in Bognor.
They didn't seem to have a security guard (unlike my local Brixton one!) and the manager was telling off his staff (in front of us) because someone had nicked a DVD player and he'd found the empty box. He was telling them they had to be vigilant etc - but they had their backs to the door where they were sitting at their checkouts doing their checkout thing and I thought it was a bit much.
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Hi Blip - you have similar aims, in as much as I bought a tandem and trailer this year so I can combine less motor vehicle use with more exercise (with built in childcare) and local shopping. I reckon I've at least halved the spend at Tesco and saved about 150 miles driving so far. It also gives time doing an activity with my daughter rather than just sitting together in a car which is great.
Our nearest village shop is a smallish Co-op, so there are inevitably trips to Tesco, but our local garden centre now contains an Eco-St store where I can refill Ecover bottles and recycle light bulbs, CDs and all sorts.
I still use the car too much, but that's work related.
Q
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Agressive is a bit of an understatement. Tesco forced me to go in to work some years ago on Boxing Day because a load of soup had not been delivered by my company and if I did not sort it they would not be ordering any more. Lovely people to deal with...NOT.
On another occasion the port of Felixstowe was shut due to high winds meaning we could not collect a couple of loads of tinned tomatos..Tesco's response..that is not our problem just get them delivered NOW !
OK, so in the first instance your company said they would deliver something on a certain date and they failed to do so. Are you surprised that Tesco demanded delivery? Heck, if I pay for 24 hour delivery on an item and it arrives in 36, I raise hell with the supplier. Why should the customer (Tescos in this case) accept poor service? On the Felixtowe case, it depends on the point of responsibility. If your company had said "we'll get these from Spain, and ferry them, then drive them to you by date X", then they should have allowed for inevitable delays. If your job was solely to pick them up from Felixstowe, then it is Tesco's problem, and your management should have defended that position. I had the same problem with a supplier and stuff getting caught up in customs - they should have thought of that and shipped them earlier. Not my problem.
If they then decide not to buy whatever it is from the supplier that week (say because it's not selling so well) then the supplier is left with a huge investment in producing a Tesco-spec product and a warehouse full of food that's not going to sell.
What would you rather they did....take the hit and pass it on to you? Of course, we're never price sensitive, we always consistently support providers, regardless of the price. Oh, no, we don't, as you can read in every Lidl "cheap crap" thread on this (and previous) sites.