Tuesday 30 April 2013

A mouthful of raisins as I meet the Chancellor


"Whaaaaaaaaaat?!"

That was my colleague Ian Whadcoat's response to the news that I'd picked us up some chocolate-coated raisins on my lunchbreak.


Fruit and nut stall
"Yep, I'm putting us on a diet Whaddy," I told him. "If we're gonna eat chocolate in the afternoons, it needs to be healthy chocolate."

As previously mentioned in this blog, Whaddy and I have something of a sweet tooth and take great delight in feeding each other up on chocolate brownies, egg custards, cakes, eclairs, and pretty much anything else sugary we can get our hands on. Add to this the pizzas we like to order into the newsroom on a Sunday night, and a pattern of mutual greed has well and truly developed.

And we're going on holiday soon. Not together, obviously. But we've both got time booked off towards the end of June for our respective breaks and Whaddy needs to slim into his mankini.


So on my lunchbreak walk into town yesterday I bypassed all my usual cake-buying haunts and went instead to A Woodhouse, a huge fruit and nut stall that stretches almost the entire length of Derby's Eagle Market. This place does a huge range of dried fruits, nuts and seeds, but I knew Whaddy would think I'd had a lobotomy if I went back to the office with a bag of birdfood so I plumped instead for the chocolate-coated versions.

I got a mixed bag of chocolate raisins, white chocolate strawberries and yogurt cranberries.
Choccy treats

And Whaddy looked appalled when I got back to the office and told him.

 But the Derby Telegraph newsroom is not a good place to be if you're on a diet. Yesterday, as we were discussing our latest health kick (give it three days max), one of the reporters brought a tin of shortbread over to the newdesk, and another colleague Cheryl Hague was visibly shaking with excitement as she tried to break the seal.

Anyway, Whaddy and I then proceeded to lark about taking pictures of our chocolate-coated fruit (news never sleeps).

"Don't make me look fat," grinned Whaddy as he posed with the bag.

Totally forgetting, of course, that Chancellor George Osborne was due to arrive in the office at any moment to talk about the economy.


Look out Whaddy, George is behind you!
So as Whaddy posed for the snap here, the Chancellor was approaching from behind, just out of shot. And immediately after cramming a fistful of choccy raisins into my mouth, I spotted him.

"And this is Jade Beecroft, our deputy news editor," said the editor as we shook hands.

"Mwuagh mmmm mwuagh," I managed, before deciding the only option was to man up, forget chewing, and just swallow.

Luckily the man in the blue tie didn't really seem to notice my watering eyes, so I resisted the natural urge to offer him the bag ("hello Mr Chancellor, lets talk about Britain's deficit, and by the way, would you like a yogurty cranberry?") and crammed the rest of them into my drawer as Whaddy sniggered in the background.

Not my finest hour though, admittedly. And definitely proof that I need to bring the sugar cravings under control.











 

Monday 29 April 2013

Saffron: Tales from the Persian Kitchen

Today we're going to talk about local food from a land far away, a place that usually only makes the headlines for the wrong reasons.

My friend Yasmin Khan, a 32-year-old writer and campaigner living in London, has set out to make an Iranian cookbook and accompanying documentary showcasing a different side to contemporary Iran - journeying through the country and using food as a medium to reveal the truth about its culture and people.

Yasmin hopes to put together traditional cuisine, including recipes from her 77-year-old grandmother who lives on a rice farm, alongside those from ordinary working Iranians. She wants to show us the real people behind the headlines, and in cooking with them, also share their stories.

In order to make her dream a reality, Yasmin wants to make a TV pilot and travel through Iran with a professional photographer collecting recipes and stories. But she needs a little help to make this happen.
Yasmin Khan

She explains: "Ask the average person in the West what they think of Iran and chances are they'll mention bombs, nukes, war. And that's just if you get them on a good day. 

"I'd like to show you a different side of Iran. A side that entices you with its delicious and sophisticated cuisine; that takes your breath away with its dramatic landscapes of desert, tropical forests and snow-capped mountains; that touches your soul through the poetry of Rumi and Hafez and dazzles you with its intricate, beautiful architecture. 
"At a time of increased military tensions, a project which humanises Iranian people, dispels stereotypes, gives a voice to a people rarely seen or hear in the Western media and promotes cross-cultural understanding could not be more important. Saffron aims to do just this, guiding readers on a fascinating journey into the hearts (and stomachs) of Iranians today."
Yasmin has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise the £8,500 needed to get the project under way. Kickstarter is a really interesting idea - basically supporters can pledge as much or as little help as they can via the project's website, BUT Yasmin has a time limit to reach her goal and if she doesn't hit her target she won't get any of the money that has been pledged. 

With 21 days still to go she's already banked an impressive £5,522. Unsurprising really, Yasmin has an impressive campaigning background, having played a role in the campaign for justice for Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian man shot dead by London police in Stockwell tube station in July 2005.

But with £2,978 still to go, she still needs a little help. Please visit her Kickstarter page  or Facebook page to watch a video where she explains herself why the project is so important, and find out how you can back it. Even if it's only by forwarding the details to any family, friends or colleagues who might be interested. If 2,978 more people only pledge £1 (the minimum donation) she'll have nailed it.








Sunday 28 April 2013

Tescopoly


Following on from yesterday's blog about the success of campaign group Belper Against Tesco in fighting plans for a huge superstore in the town, I stumbled across a website called Tescopoly - with its handy catchline 'every little hurts'.

The site lists more than 500 local campaigns against supermarkets and claims that Tesco now controls over 30% of the grocery market in the UK.

Tescopoly is an alliance of organisations founded in 2005 to challenge the negative impact of the supermarkets on local economies, high streets and supply chains. It is also calling for legislation to curb the market power of the UK's major supermarket chains.

Members include Friends of the Earth, War on Want, and The Small and Family Farms Alliance.

It also supports local people who want to set up campaign groups to fight supermarket developments in their areas.

Well worth a look....



Saturday 27 April 2013

Belper Against Tesco


A Derbyshire town is celebrating a huge, David and Goliath-style win against my old pal Tesco.

The good folk of Belper have been fighting for six years to resist plans to build an 80,000 square foot superstore in the town, and this week the campaign group Belper Against Tesco (BATS) said it was "over the moon" after the chain revealed it was ditching the plans.

From the very beginning Tesco met with fierce opposition in Belper. 

In order to build the superstore Tesco wanted to move the town's football club and demolish the library to make way for a relief road, but had agreed instead to fund new hockey, tennis and cricket facilities, build a new library and a community hall.

In addition to the BATS campaigners, the plans were also greeted with horror by the Belper Civic Forum, local traders and residents. Hundreds of people signed petitions, wrote letters and turned out for protest meetings.

Tesco said this week that the decision to scrap the Belper development followed its announcement earlier this month that its profits had dipped and it had decided to shelve plans to build superstores on more than 100 sites.

Those against the Tesco development in Belper argued that it would lead to job losses with the closure of small shops and the businesses along their supply chain, impact on the high street and local economy, lessen the availability of local produce rather than that shipped hundreds of miles by Tesco, have a similar effect on the economy of local villages, and generate more traffic.

Belper really is a lovely little town and its main shopping drag is full of quirky independent shops and curiosities. So congratulations to BATS and all those who fought the battle to keep the town Tesco-free.

Friday 26 April 2013

Grow your own food you can trust


After a little break for Easter we're back to do our Friday Food You Can Trust pieces in the paper, supporting local businesses, and this week we're focusing on garden centres.

Yesterday I spoke to a lovely man called Robert Walker, who runs Meynall Langley Gardens, in Derbyshire. Robert's granddad started the business in 1941 and his 82-year-old dad Derek still works in the nursery seven days a week.

Robert agreed that if you want to eat local, you really can't do much better than growing your own. Read all his top tips here.



Today's feature


Thursday 25 April 2013

When the chips are down...

I'm typing this one from the comfort of my old bed, in my old room, at my old pal and former flatmate Anna's house, where I was forced to set up emergency camp last night after those boys at Royal Derby Hospital did unspeakable things to my hip joint yesterday morning (see previous blog).

So I'm going to start this blog by saying aren't friends wonderful? I was conveyed to Anna's house last night by my knight in shining Vauxhall Corsa (Tel pool car) Joey, one of our wonderful reporters, who admittedly had got his money's worth of entertainment after spending the entire evening in the newsroom telling me I was walking like an extra from a zombie movie.

And then Super Anna took over. Within 15 minutes I'd been helped into a pair of trackie bottoms and fleecie top, I'd got a cuppa on my lap and a slightly strange programme which seemed to involve a lot of bears mating was on the box (which apparently Anna had been looking forward to watching all evening). At one point I went up to the loo (quite a long process at the moment) and came back downstairs to find what appeared to be an identical romantic scene to the one I'd left 10 minutes previously.

"Wow, are they still at it?" I asked.

"Nope, this is a different pair," came the reply.

Unfortunately the leg pain hasn't done much to improve my insomnia, which brings me neatly round to my year without supermarkets. There's always a link - no matter how tenuous!

Because when you shop local, what you actually find is that your circle of friends grows too.

When you're at the check- out in Tesco, you're either dealing with a self-service machine (and those things are never friendly) or you've got twenty different cashiers to choose from and you've never seen any of them before in your life.

Whereas when you're in your local butcher, pet shop or greengrocer, you're dealing with people you know by name and have grown to like.

Case in point: this week alone I've been met with a bevvy of supportive suggestions from my local shopkeeper pals who've been reading this blog and know I can't sleep.

The staff at the wonderful Soundbites vegan and wholefood shop in Derby have suggested everything from camomile tea (can I put whisky in that?) to a hot bath and half a banana before bed.

Others have delved into my reading choices, suggesting that the tedium of Bronte's Villette (yep, still battling on with that) might be stopping me from relaxing. And they probably have a point.

And of course my friends at Baked, the amazing bakery in Derby, are simply saying "welcome to our world" because they get up at 2am anyway to make all their brilliant bread. Quite frankly I don't know how they do it.

So the point I'm making is that when the chips are down people rally round, and I've got a much wider circle of concerned and helpful people since starting the supermarket-free challenge.

Although I will admit, when you can't walk far the Tesco delivery van does start to look like a tempting option too!

Wednesday 24 April 2013

An undignified morning

So this morning found me lying on my back on a paper sheet on an operating-theatre style bed, wearing a scratchy tie-at-the-back dress, with underwear hitched up at an undignified angle and two men peering down at my groin.

No, I wasn’t trying out some weird, extreme new pubic grooming craze or getting my first vajazzle. I was actually at Royal Derby Hospital having some sort of radioactive dye injected into my hip joint before an MRI scan. And unfortunately, thanks to all the horse riding, my new surgeon friend was having trouble getting through the layers of muscle around my pelvis (god it feels good writing that – first time I’ve ever been accused of having too much muscle) to reach the bones beneath.

And of course, because these were very nice men (and they really were very very nice men - the Royal Derby is a bloody great hospital) we were making polite chit-chat as all this was going on. We covered my job (and I’m pretty sure they didn’t stick the needles in any harder once they figured out I’m a journalist), rugby (like I know a damn thing about that), horses (“expensive aren’t they?” - “yes”) and the future of the newspaper industry (at least I could cover my winces there by pretending it was the pain!).

At one point we broke off in the middle of a discussion on the youth of today (and how inept work experience kids tend to be) to marvel as the main man pulled a needle the size of a fishing rod from my thigh.

“My god,” I joked. “I’m glad I only spotted that when it was going out - not when it was going in!” (said the actress to the bishop)

“Er yes, well we’ve got to put a few more of those in yet,” came the reply.

Gulp.

Anyway, the poky bit of the morning was over soon enough and then I got to have a nice little snooze inside the MRI scanner, which is basically like being put down to hibernate inside a giant bog roll tube.

So what’s all this got to do with avoiding the supermarkets? Well not a lot really, I have to be honest, but I’ve got to write about something and the morning at the hospital is pretty the only thing of interest I’ve got to report today. It has rendered me pretty much an invalid though, so for the next 24 hours I’ll be at the mercy of my friends and colleagues, and I guess I won’t be able to do much if they want to feed me some supermarket-bought grub.

The little information leaflet that I was sent beforehand did mention that I might be sore and unable to drive afterwards, but to be honest I only skimmed it 10 minutes before the appointment and I kind of just assumed it was a warning for the older patients.

But nope, I actually can barely walk this afternoon. And apparently the fact that they found it so hard to reach my joint will only make matters worse. I was told in no uncertain terms not to drive for at least 24 hours so I’m stranded in Derby and I’ve had to call my lovely friend Anna (yes the same one who got me hideously drunk on Friday night) and beg for the spare bed at her house tonight. One of our lovely reporters, Zena, came to pick me up from the hospital and in a one-in-a-lifetime fit of generosity my boss has just popped out to buy me a cheese toastie from the sarnie shop (not the one that does added pubes) - which I’ve eaten half of and now feel that I may throw up.

So, definitely no danger of me ending up in a supermarket today then!

Tuesday 23 April 2013

Booze without supermarkets?

With the exception of our jaunt to Thornbridge for some real ale, I've not really touched much on booze. But of course, these days, supermarkets in many cases have replaced off licences as the main places where people buy their alcohol.

Thanks bruv!
My little brother (although not so little any more) now lives and works in Bahrain, and is currently back in the UK for a visit. He was round at my house for tea last night and came baring duty free goodies in the form of perfume and a huge bottle of single malt.

Now I do absolutely adore my whisky so I was delighted with the pressie.

Before starting this challenge I would say I probably bought booze from the supermarkets more than anywhere else. The prices are generally good and then of course there's that old chestnut of the convenience issues once again.

I don't tend to drink in pubs quite as much as I used to (although from Saturday's hungover blog you'll have gathered that I do still go out drinking once in a while!) - mainly because I have a busy life and not a great deal of spare cash since the credit crunch hit so having a nice whisky on the sofa is sometimes the best thing.

But I don't really have an off licence within walking distance. There are a couple of corner shop-type affairs that do sell a bit of booze, but the selection isn't brilliant and neither are the prices. I can pick up some lovely real ale at Brown and Green, in Derby, but that's not exactly local either, and Soundbites, the vegan wholefood shop, has recently stopped selling organic vegan red wine.

Publicans and off licence owners would argue that the supermarkets are pricing them out of the market.

I think I need to focus a little more on finding the quirky local offies in Chesterfield that are still open and supporting them....



Monday 22 April 2013

Is it time to boycott Amazon?


I've got a bit of a confession to make today. In my drive to promote local businesses, there is one huge fly in the ointment. I'm a massive fan of shopping website Amazon.

 I buy all sorts on Amazon. I'm a massive reader and tend to get a lot of my books from the site because they have so many different titles in stock so I don't have to wait for a shop to order in what I want. And they're often cheaper than in the book shops. It's not that I don't love book shops, because I really really do. If I've got a spare hour (which is once in a blue moon) then there's nothing I like more than pottering around a book shop. There's something so special about the smell and feel of new books, and the promise of all those stories waiting to be discovered. But for my day-to-day book buying needs, I'm afraid it's Amazon that does the job.

Parcels like this are regular

I've also got about 150 titles saved onto my Amazon 'wish list', which I update every time a friend or colleague recommends a good read, so friends and family always know where to go for birthday present ideas for me. And it means I don't lose or forget recommendations.

I also tend to go to Amazon a lot for presents for other people. There's such a massive range of gift ideas and if you're searching for a paticular thing, chances are you'll find it. For example, my grandma is quackers about ducks so I often tailor her presents accordingly. All I have to do is type "duck" into the Amazon search bar to be presented with a whole range of duck-related gifts - including models, diaries, calendars, toys, games, ducks on oven gloves, ducks cushions.... a seemingly endless parade of duck giftware! It would take me hours of dashing round town, in and out of various gift shops, to rustle up something comparably duck-related.

But I've just done a google search on shopping with Amazon and found rather a lot of less-than-positive articles, mainly on how Amazon undercuts others on price and has been accused of dodging tax and being poor on social and enviornmental issues.

Earlier this week I posted about how chain stores like HMV and Waterstones tend to be really good for local high streets and how when they close, it can have a knock-on effect on surrounding businesses. And yet when I'm buying my books and CDs from Amazon I'm doing nothing to support these high street businesses.

The thing is though, Amazon is just so convenient, especially for those of us who work long hours and can't necessarily count on getting a break. I can shop on Amazon for what I need in literally a couple of minutes and get the parcels delivered straight to work so I don't need to worry about missing the postman.

I reckon the Amazon habit might be even harder to break than the supermarket one....





Sunday 21 April 2013

My brilliant year without supermarkets.

So the insomnia has kicked in again and I have to tell you I'm not really feeling very brilliant. I feel tired, run-down, washed-out and basically just a bit pants. I woke up at the crack of dawn after another late night - not helped by the fact that after going to bed I was woken by a distress call and then spent the small hours chasing a baby mouse around the living room (part of the cat's ongoing captive breeding project).

It's at times like these when the vow to avoid the supermarkets becomes particularly hard, because actually shopping local does take a teeny bit more effort.

That's the thing with the supermarkets. I've said it before and I'll say it again - they're just so damn convenient. And I really do think it's that level of one-stop-shop convenience that has allowed them to get such a strangle-hold over our lives in the 21st century. After all, we're all so busy multi-tasking, juggling work with families, working longer hours, checking our emails in bed at night and being bombarded with a million new ways to spend any spare time we do have - from books (which of course can also now be read on-screen) to that must-see show, crazes like zumba, running clubs, hundreds of TV channels and so on.... life is busy and we're always finding new ways to fill every single second of our time.

It's no wonder that at the end of the day we really can't be bothered to do much more than drag ourselves round the nearest supermarket - and to hell with the horse meat stories or the fact that it's doing our local greengrocer out of business.

Sometimes we need a bit of inspiration to go that extra mile. Which in my case means heading out to my local high street or farm shop rather than just slopping off to Tesco.

There was a book floating round the newsroom the other day that caught my eye. We're often sent freebies and other bits to review. This book was called 'The Art of Being Brilliant' and was written by two Andys - Andy Cope and Andy Whittaker. The reason it ended up in the Derby Telegraph newsroom was because Andy Cope is a local lad - a former teacher who runs a training company and has written a series of books for children. He is also currently doing great things in schools by running 'Brilliant Derby' workshops to teach children the art of positive thinking and aiming high. There's a story about it on our website if you want to know more.

Now I usually view personal development books with a good deal of skepticism, but as I'm not feeling particularly brilliant right now, something about the title pricked at my imagination and I thought I'd give it a go, so I borrowed it.

I'm about halfway through it right now and I have to say, I'm really enjoying it. For a start, it's pretty funny. These guys clearly have a sense of humour. It's also nice and British; there's still an undercurrent of reassuring stoicism along with all the positive messages, which I do think we English need. I can't cope with all that American, happy-clappy, think-positive-and-you-could-be-the-first-woman-on-the-moon nonsense that the US self-help gurus seem to specialise in. I mean, lets be realistic here. I'm probably never going to own a sports car (red Ferrari would be the dream), become a vet (childhood dream) or marry Johnny Depp (his loss).

Inspiring stuff from the Andys
But it does say some really very cheery things about opening your mind, being more creative and changing your way of thinking, and more often than not a little bit of positive thinking is really all we need to make the day brighter.

So this morning I'm putting a brave face on things. Rather than saying I didn't sleep well last night, I'm going to say that at least I got four hours, which is much better than nothing. And waking up early meant that I've just been able to go for a lovely early morning ride in bright sunshine, enjoying the traffic-free Sunday morning roads. 

I'm not tired. I'm just energetically-challenged. And I'm relishing my supermarket-free challenge. And on the off chance that Johnny Depp does come knocking, I'm sure I could muster up a bit of enthusiasm for him too!









Saturday 20 April 2013

My hangover without supermarkets

Walnut whip isn’t a traditional hangover cure – but it certainly gave me a lift earlier this afternoon.


I was out with my friend Anna in town last night and we were on a bit of a mission to let our hair down, so after a few too many glasses or red wine, mixed with a dash of Guinness and a few too many slugs of Jack Daniels, I was feeling more than a little delicate this morning.

Delicate is actually a polite way of putting it. When I woke up I felt like somebody had split my head open with an axe. My stomach was churning, my knees were wobbly, and I found myself sliding along the hall wall as I made my shaky way to the bathroom.

Possibly still drunk – never mind hungover!

So we had plans today to visit a huge farmers market near Sheffield, but clearly they were shelved in favour of lying on the sofa and whimpering. As a student this was pretty routine behaviour and many a happy day was lost to drinking endless cups of tea and watching daytime telly while nursing a sore head. But, 10 years later, hangovers really are debilitating because when you’re working full time you don’t really want to be writing off one of your weekend days to a self-inflicted illness! This is probably why I’m not normally a massive drinker any more – and probably why the hangovers seem to be getting worse when I do over-indulge.

Anyway, the damage was done and the farmer’s market was off. My hangover without supermarkets had begun.

After loafing around moaning and drinking Alka Seltzer, by lunchtime things were looking up slightly so I took myself off to the stables for an hour for a bit of fresh air and sunshine.

And here I learned an interesting fact. Apparently I’m gaining something of a reputation with this challenge and friends are starting to watch what they say around me, for fear of having an idle remark turned into blog fodder.

This is according to my friend Georgina, who told me this afternoon that she was sat in a horsebox with my mum the other day on the way to an event, reading the blog aloud and laughing because, as she put it, “the whole world now knows your mum has a small bladder”.

Thank you Georgina!
Well, yes. But I reckon this is pretty much common knowledge anyway. And with more than 100 entries already under my belt and another eight months of daily blogging left to go, I’ve got to get my inspiration from somewhere. I can’t just repeatedly write “good day – didn’t go to Tesco!”.

Georgina was kind enough to give me her last walnut whip for a much-needed sugar hit to help ease the hangover.

And here she is, with said walnut whip, becoming slightly unwilling blog fodder. Sorry Georgina, but at least it’ll give my mum a chuckle, and I’m sure you’ll be getting plenty more laughs at her expense as the year rolls on.

So now it's 5.30pm and the hangover is finally beginning to lift. I'm sat in the garden with my laptop on my knee enjoying the lovely late-afternoon sun and vowing never to drink again. Ha, I wonder how long that will last!







Friday 19 April 2013

Local dairy farmers blockade the Co-op


You may recall that out of all the supermarkets that I used to frequent before the ban came into force on January 1st, my local branch of the Co-op, in Hasland, was the one I found the hardest to give up. Within walking distance of my house, it was a place I popped into on an almost daily basis for a pint of milk or loaf of bread.

I was also under the impression that the Co-op was one of the better supermarkets in terms of ethics, with its very public support of the Fairtrade movement (it was the first supermarket to launch a Fairtrade certified own brand product) and a leader in sustainability with its own windfarms. It also makes sure that all its eggs and much of its chicken is free range. It is repeatedly referred to as one of the UK's greenest supermarkets, and indeed, Ethical Consumer rates the Co-op as the UK's most ethical supermarket.

However, it appears that not everyone is impressed with the Co-op's policies, and a group of Derbyshire farmers have accused the supermarket of being less-than fair when it comes to trade.

This week a group of angry dairy workers called Farmers for Action have been blockading a Co-op distribution centre. About 70 protestors blocked the centre, in Alfreton, Derbyshire, for several hours on Wednesday night.

Farmer Paul Rowbottom, who is the local co-ordinator for the campaign group, told one of our reporters that the Co-op is paying farmers so little for their milk that they are currently making a loss of 2p for every litre they make.

He said milk was costing farmers 33.5p per litre to produce, but being bought by the Co-op for 31.85p per litre.

But a spokeswoman for the Co-operative food group told the Derby Telegraph that the supermarket was "one of the UK's biggest supporters of British farmers".

As as I was sat in the newsroom reading through the story for today's paper on my late shift, I felt rather vindicated that I took the decision four months ago to include my small local Co-op branch in my supermarket boycott.

But the plot thickens. You will recall that my partner Neil (while being incredibly supportive of my challenge) is under no obligation to avoid the supermarkets himself. And he does still pop into the Co-op in Hasland on occasion.

Subsequently there have been several times lately where we have had two pints of milk on the go in our house - one bought by Neil at the Co-op and one bought by me from a farm shop or similar. We don't do this deliberately, but sometimes Neil will come home with a pint of Co-op milk and I will then go elsewhere to buy myself an alternative.

He thinks I'm a bit bonkers for doing this, but up until recently I actually only drank soya milk because I didn't believe in some of the practices behind the mass dairy industry. However, since starting this challenge and learning about places like Our Cow Molly, in Sheffield, and Woodthorpe Grange, in Ashover, I've relaxed my approach and now quite enjoy drinking the odd bit of cow's milk again - as well as butter and cheese. But I will not touch supermarket milk because I'm not sure quite where it's come from.

I keep telling Neil off for buying the supermarket milk, and now I've got an even better reason. So perhaps he'll think twice before heading round the corner to the Co-op and start buying more ethical milk instead?


Thursday 18 April 2013

Lambing is over at Highfield House

Second sheep-based post this week!

We pop to our favourite Highfield House Farm Shop pretty much every weekend now (and generally buy them out of the lovely Ann Forshaw's yogurts - which the person behind the counter always finds very funny), and this weekend we were amused to see farmer David Prince looking particularly chipper.

The wind has been really blowing, and he told us gleefully that it would be clocking up the pennies for him with his wind turbines which help to power the farm.

The Prince family keep flocks of several different breeds of prize-winning sheep so have had a busy few months lambing. We know from the recent headlines that the unseasonally late snow two weeks ago caused havoc for sheep farmers so we asked David if his flock had been affected.

He told us that his sheep are all born indoors so thankfully were unharmed by the snow. And with lambing now finished, David is getting a much-needed extra few hours sleep (which might account for his cheeriness!). He's also been able to turn the sheep out onto his fields this week, now the weather has turned warmer.

But he also told us of a farmer friend nearby who had lost nearly 200 lambs to the bad weather - representing almost 20% of his annual production of sheep. With the average lamb netting about £100 for the farmer that's a loss of nearly £2,000, which David pointed out would have covered the farmer's grain bill.

It's a sobering thought and just goes to show how much farmers are still at the mercy of the elements.


Wednesday 17 April 2013

Tesco reports dip in profits

So Britain's biggest retailer, Tesco, has announced today that its annual profits are down for the first time in twenty years. Its full-year pre-tax profits have more than halved.

Clearly I'd love it if this was down to a shift in our shopping habits following the horse meat scandal. But unfortunately, according to reports, it appears Tesco is blaming it largely on poor performance in its US stores, which it is now closing down.

The firm has confirmed it is winding up its US chain of 199 Fresh and Easy shops, which have never made a profit, at a cost of more than £1 billion.

However,Tesco said its online groceries business has been performing well. It's also been going through a restructure - hiring more staff and revamping some of its stores.

The supermarket revealed that it is taking a £800 million property writedown because it has decided to shelve plans to build large stores on more than 100 sites bought for development and concentrate instead on building its portfolio of smaller convenience stores and its online sales. Bad news for our local Chesterfield pub The Crispin which is currently fighting plans to turn it into a Tesco convenience store.

So can local food campaigners such as myself (hey - I've not been near a supermarket for four months so I reckon I can now call myself a campaigner!) chalk this up as a victory?

Sadly I suspect not. Tesco is still Britain's biggest supermarket and one of the largest supermarket chains in the world (third largest I believe - but don't quote me on that one!). And despite the recent bad press surround things like the horse meat scandal and milk blockades of last summer, shoppers are still queuing to get into the car park of our local store every weekend.

It's profits might be down by 51% but it still took a healthly £1.9 billion! And with that in the bank, I'm guessing bosses won't be losing sleep over the fact I've decided to spend my monthly £400 food and fuel budget elsewhere.

Still, as the supermarket itself likes to remind us, every little helps, So I'll be continuing with my drive to be supermarket-free. Because although that £400 won't mean much to Tesco, it certainly will help my local greengrocer, pet shop, butcher and petrol station. And I guess that is the beauty of shopping local - you can make sure your hard-earned cash counts by choosing exactly who to spend it with.







Tuesday 16 April 2013

Lavender the showjumping sheep

Okay, the link to this post and supermarkets is going to be even more tenuous than usual (hey - I'm blogging every day so there's only so much I can find to write about Tesco) but this is so fantastic I had to share it, and it's about a farm animal.... which is sort of relevant.

This woolly jumper's show jumping skills have saved him from the pot - or from becoming part of a supermarket ready meal (see - I knew I'd squeeze a link in somewhere!).

We've featured Lavender the ram in today's Derby Telegraph and you can also see a video of him jumping out our website.

Farmer's granddaughter Isobel Brown, 13, taught him how to jump using a special hurdle she designed for him in fields in Staffordshire, using foodie bribes ranging from corn to croissants (and to be fair, I think I'd try to hurdle a brook if there was a nice warm pastry at the other side!).

Isobel told our reporter Sophie Evans that she shows Lavender how to tackle the jumps by taking them on herself first. She said: "I show him a jump, I jump it, and then he follows me - most of the time."

Lavender had been destined for the slaughter house before his showed off his agility, but now Isobel has been told she can keep him.

See - they're not just dumb animals....

Monday 15 April 2013

My views on chains

Since starting this challenge a few people have questioned my use of high street chains like Wilkinsons - which of course I have made no secret of and blogged about.

Colleagues have sneered at me for going into Primark. And more polite readers such as "Flon", have contacted me via sites like twitter to gently point out that places like Holland and Barrett are, in fact, owned by huge corporate giants (in H&B's case an American firm called The Carlyle Group).

All feedback is very welcome, and while it would be easy for me to dodge these questions by simply pointing out that this blog is called My Year Without Supermarkets - not My Year Without Chains - I feel I owe you a better explanation than that.

I realise of course that the larger a company grows, generally the more corporate its interests become and the more important it is to please the shareholders - often at the expense of its ethical concerns or suppliers.

But despite this, I don't actually believe that all chains are bad. The Body Shop, for example, uses Fair Trade ingredients in all its products, supports charities like The Teenage Cancer Trust, and is against animal testing. Lush uses recyclable packaging and is active with a huge number of national and international charities and good causes. And Holland and Barrett supports vegetarianism and runs its own 'Plan-it Green' project help the environment.

And like it or not, chain stores are massive props for local high streets, in turn helping to support smaller businesses and independent shops. You only have to look at the impact that the closure of Woolworths or HMV has had on shopping streets around the country. Empty store fronts are no good for any high street and most shopping districts (outside the indoor shopping malls) welcome the buzz created by the opening of a recognisable chain like M&S or Debenhams, which in its turn brings increased footfall to all stores in the area.

There are of course exceptions, and the mega firms behind some of the well known brands might not be quite so green or ethical. You also have to wonder how stores like Primark manage to produce their clothes so cheaply, and it will of course always be better to go into a charity shop or second hand store instead.

But my personal view is that as long as we're talking about chains that actually specialise in something - be it music, clothes, cosmetics, homeware or whatever - then these stores tend to boost trade in the areas where they operate and complement the overall make-up of the high street.

The problem I have with supermarkets is that they're a one-stop-shop, so you can buy everything from food to household goods to clothes, CDs, books and gardening gear, and by nature they tend to set up on huge plots in vast car parks, well away from other shops. So they draw customers away from local businesses and high streets. And of course because they're so huge they can then undercut others on price, bully suppliers into accepting less for their produce (which in turn has an impact on things like animal welfare), get away with dubious practices like allowing horse meat to get into their burgers, and generally just throw their weight around.

It's not an ideal philosophy and I'm aware that it won't suit everyone. But we've all got to start somewhere if we want to make a difference, and my contribution to a greener, happier planet is vegetarianism, direct debits to a handful of charities, and avoiding the supermarkets. 


Sunday 14 April 2013

Another Sunday farm shop sojourn

"Ahhhh aren't you lovely, who'd want to eat you?" I said to my new friend as I scratched his cheek.

I make friends with a bullock
"I would," chipped in Neil, licking his lips.

Sunday farm shop trips have become a regular feature in our routine since quitting the supermarkets, with our favourite being Highfield House Farm, about 10 minutes away from home.

But today, in the interests of gaining more blog fodder and trying something a bit different, we decided to explore further afield.

Marsh Green Farm, on the main road between Chesterfield and Matlock, is a brilliant example of how, with the right planning, farmers can create a business that will attract day-trippers.

Owners Lesley and Darren opened just under a year ago and have a beautifully laid out and airy farm shop with a wide range of produce and a cafe (aptly named The Ramblers' Rest) where visitors can enjoy coffee, breakfast or even a Sunday roast.

There is also an agricultural feed barn, plants and seeds, chickens and made-to-order coops for sale, and a chance for visitors to pet the animals. As well as the Longhorn cattle that I made friends with, Lesley told me there are plans to build a rabbit enclosure to entertain kids while their parents shop. And with public footpaths heading towards nearby Ashover from the car park, it's easy to imagine visitors going for a walk, returning to the farm for lunch and then doing a bit of shopping before heading home.

Breakfast with Hendos
Neil and I enjoyed a lovely breakfast in the cafe, and I was particularly delighted when a bottle of the hallowed Henderson's Relish was produced by the waitress for my scrambled eggs.

We came away with local produce including Woodthorpe Grange Derbyshire milk (made at a farm within spitting distance of Marsh Green) and a lovely veggie quiche made on site.

And the prices were really very reasonable. Neil got a steak from the butchers counter for less than £3. We also bought two different types of cheese, artisan pasta, asparagus, cherry tomatoes, rustic ham, garlic, passata, coke and oat biscuits and only spent £20 (which in farm shop terms is pretty good).

Our only quibble was that it would have been nice to see MORE locally-produced foods. Quite a few of the brands we saw were the kind of artisan, cottage brand names that you spot at touristy-type country shops up and down the country. But to give Marsh Green credit, they have only been open 11 months so no doubt are still building up contacts and sourcing their product range. You certainly couldn't fault them in terms of variety.

Deli counter
Pre-packaged meat available














The history of the farm






We will certainly be visiting Marsh Green again, especially in the summer when we can combine it with a walk and Sunday lunch.

The picture left was taken from the front of the cafe menu and explains the history of the farm.


Saturday 13 April 2013

Do I need a toilet clause?

Last night, on the drive from work over to my mum's house for tea, I started to feel the pressure of my supermarket ban in a whole new way. And actually, I'm surprised it's taken this long for me to find myself caught short.

Ladies and gents, I'm a member of the small bladder club, and as such I can't tackle a long journey, long film, long meeting, or in fact anything long without needing a comfort break. Colleagues mock me at work as I excuse myself from conferences to nip to the loo and friends laugh as I plot road trips according to the number of service stations along the way.

As a rider, I've perfected the art of squatting behind a bush while hanging onto the reins of my horse. And if I'm out at an event or gig you can be sure I'm keeping one eye on the length of the toilet queue.

Supermarkets are so very often the saviours of the small bladdered. As cash-strapped local councils close public conveniences, they are often the only place you can be sure to find a relatively clean (and free) loo.

When I was a roving reporter in Edinburgh, supermarket loos were a godsend because some days I'd be out of the office for hours on end doing interviews and covering courts. I pretty much had a mental map of every supermarket bog in East Lothian and Fife.

Nowadays my job in Derby is mainly office-based, but as it can take me over an hour in traffic to get to and from work, loo stops are still an issue. I used to nip to one of the three huge Tescos I pass on my daily commute to go to the toilet (and usually end up coming out with £10-worth of shopping too) but now I use a bone fide service station just off the A38 at Alfreton.

However, the route from work to my mum's house in the Peak District is longer and more rural. My saving grace used to be the Sainsburys at Matlock, but of course now that's forbidden. The rules clearly state I must not set foot in any supermarket.

Last night I made the additional schoolboy error of having a cup of tea in the office before leaving work. So by the time I'd got 20 minutes up the road I was beginning to sweat.

As I neared Matlock my conscience waged an inner war with my bladder. Gripping the steering wheel and gritting my teeth I continued on past Sainsburys without stopping and headed through Darley Dale.

As the pressure rose, so did the dial on my speedometer. By the time I'd got onto the road through Chatsworth I was driving with wreckless disregard for the safety of the sheep.

And my god the cattle grids were excruciating.

As I finally pulled into my mum's driveway I was positively bursting. Luckily I have my own key so I didn't have to wait for her to answer the door. I let myself in and went belting off upstairs to the loo, bellowing a greeting in her direction as I ran.

Luckily the bladder issue is hereditary (thanks mum) so she knew exactly what I was doing.

So this has got me pondering... do I need a toilet clause? I can set foot inside a supermarket if I'm about to wet my pants?

Or must I simple take my chances and run the risk of getting arrested for offences against public decency if it all goes wrong?

Thoughts anyone?

Friday 12 April 2013

Egg-streme confusion resolved


Back in January, I posted about our eggs-cellent local farmer "Not-Roger", who delivers fresh eggs to our doorstep every Thursday evening, and is called "Not-Roger" by us because we couldn't remember his name, although we do know that he's definitely NOT called Roger. See the previous post for an explanation of that!

Well, like scrambling eggs, the plot thickens, because soon after writing that post I managed to lose Not-Roger's number.

Not too much of a hardship - we've still be getting amazing eggs thanks to all the farm shops we've been visiting, but it's always nice to support a local business and have them delivered direct to the door.

Anyway, last week a postcard dropped through our letterbox advertising local free-range Hasland eggs (complete with slightly scary picture of domineering hen looming over a small white duck!), and it turned out to be from Not-Roger.

There was a note on the back saying "just in case you've lost my number". And even better - he signed off as Rob, so we now know his name.

Of course I got in touch, explained the situation, and yesterday half a dozen lovely free range eggs were delivered. Plus, thanks to the postcard, we now know that he does duck eggs too.

Although I suspect in my mind I might always think of Rob as Not-Roger the Egg Man!









Thursday 11 April 2013

RECIPE: Claire's mum's Broccoli and Bean flan

As mentioned in previous posts, my lovely friend Claire cooked an amazing tea for me on Saturday night. She made broccoli and kidney bean quiche, which isn't an obvious combination. It was one her mum cut out of a magazine decades ago and used to feed to Claire when she was a child, and she has very kindly agreed to let me post the recipe here:

INGREDIENTS:

Claire's mum's original cut-out
75g butter
175g wholemeal flour
200ml milk
100g broccoli florrets
300g can kidney beans, drained
100g cheddar or double Gloucester cheese
3 eggs
100ml single cream

METHOD:

Rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Mix to a dough with about 3tsps of the milk. Roll out onto a floured surface, work into a greased flan tin and bake blind at 200C for 10 minutes. Meanwhile boil or steam the broccoli for 2-5 minutes (to taste). Take the pastry case out of the oven and arrange the broccoli, kidney beans and cheese at the bottom of the flan. Beat eggs and mix with cream and remaining milk, then pour over the flan to form a topping. Bake for 35 minutes or until set.



Mmmmmmmm amazing tea - thanks Claire!