i had a chat with someone over where and how food was produced and i mentioned in the winter as well as growing window ledge salad leaves, cress and mustard i pick dandelion etc from the garden to supplement it. the look of shock was almost hilarious and they were more concerned about 'cats peeing on it' etc etc has it really come to it that people really believe veg from a supermarket is 100% sterile? if carrots etc are grown in a field im sure the odd bird will have pooped, foxes, rats, cats etc would have maybe ran across peeing as they go... not to mention the fertilisers used ... i have to say their face fell . i think the reason supermarkets have succeded is because they have helped foster this daft idea of sterility ( not going to say cleanliness as you can be clean with out releasing a mini atomic bomb in your kitchen)
its almost as if its not in plastic then its plastered with germs! we need to change that view as well before any real progress can be made.
crowsashes wrote:i think the reason supermarkets have succeded is because they have helped foster this daft idea of sterility
I think that's absolutely true. And then people start to lose their own ability to tell when something is clean/ safe (e.g. throwing things away that are actually fine to eat because of the sell-by date). I think this is part of the attraction of very processed foods as well, people have subconsciously contracted out all the worry about whether it will taste different/ be safe etc to a big company.
So true CA and Susie - packaging and food safety seem to go hand in hand. Who was it on here who said that you could buy a steak fom a butcher, put it in your pocket, take it home, run it under the tap (to get rid of the fluff) and cook it and you would be fine? I often think of that - totally true.
Yet the other day when I was stood at the checkout, the assistant was packing for someone and refused to put the meat in the same bag as some cheese as she had been trained not to 'for health and safety' - they were all in vacum packs ffs!!!!!
"A pretty face is fine, but what a farmer needs is a woman who can carry a pig under each arm"
i get that when i buy my bread! they are sat on the shelf UNWRAPPED yet they want to wrap it in plastic to keep it CLEAN i have a small cotton bag for putting the loaf in... if i could bake bread at home i would to save all this faffing about (probably time to buy a new oven )
im always shopping reduced. its the only way i can afford 'quality' food. you cant complain at 10 small apples for 45p but then they should never be priced this low or chucked out when in pristine condition!
one thing that bugs me though is food that is unwrapped doesn't need a sell by date... but if its wrapped in a plastic bag it does wheres the logic as they could both have been picked the same day yet one will be chucked a week later yet the other will sit until it looks/smells dodgy or its brought.
thats a lovely offer... i did contemplate buying a bread maker but i have such a tiny kitchen and ZERO cupboard space ( i literally have no cupboards) to store it when not in use... so much so im considering getting rid of my slow cooker as im out all day it hardly gets used anymore. i know the whole idea is to put it on and leave it but its so old school it has three setting low, high and off! ive had to keep the george grill though as i dont have a grill on the old oven... ok im convincing myself a new cooker would be a good buy!
A new t***o express opened round the corner from me this weekend...underneath the much hailed brand new eco-halls of residence that the local uni has built, find that a bit ironic myself....
England is not a Free People, till the Poor that have no Land, have a free allowance to dig and labour the Commons.
I think many of the above arguements can be fitted into either the camp which believes the majority of the population are capable of making decisions for themselves, they just make ones we may disagree with, or the camp which believes the majority of the population are not and will not be able to make the best decisions for themselves.
The tussle between the two camps is currently being played out number of other areas, e.g. New Labour's approach civil liberties in that people should be free from bad things but not free to do things. New Conservatives approach that people are not free to automatically have services but should be free to create them. The Tea Party rubbish. Switzerland's recent gun referendum as a referendum on how much the government should trust citizens.
I don't know which side of the argument I fall on but I do beleive we must address this underlying issue rather then tackling some of the symptoms such as supermarkets.
I suppose it is fair to say that at some point we all use supermarkets, even those of us who hate them. Their existence is just necessary in today's society I guess. But the fact that they have to dominate everything, and in doing so shut down local stores and pretend to be ethically sound is annoying. It's all about greed and money making and that's what is disappointing- then I guess this is the world we live in.
I wish I could say that, but I admit, I am occasionally guilty of going n for a tin of baked beans or something, I use them minmally, but I'm not quite organised enough to avoid them completely. Good for you tough!:)
Did anyone watch "The Peoples Supermarket"recently?Interesting concept.I had known about the american ones for years,but I think its new to this country.
i saw it... it was ok.. but other than the fresh produce everything else was big brand stuff. bit disappointing but it also highlighted a lot of issues with us and what we like to eat - or have been conditioned to!
cocobelle wrote:I suppose it is fair to say that at some point we all use supermarkets, even those of us who hate them.
There simply isn't anywhere else to shop round my way, except for meat (and to be honest, the local butcher isn't really up to much). No bakers, no greengrocers, nothing. The only choice I have is which supermarket to shop at.
Could you join some sort of box delivery scheme, that is, if one is available and you can afford it? Even then, they tend to include just veggies, no bread or whatever but it would be better than nothing.
There's something decidedly unsettling about having to buy from supermarkets.
. i think the reason supermarkets have succeded is because they have helped foster this daft idea of sterility ( not going to say cleanliness as you can be clean with out releasing a mini atomic bomb in your kitchen) 
i have a small cotton bag for putting the loaf in... if i could bake bread at home i would to save all this faffing about (probably time to buy a new oven 
) 
