A collection of news items of interest to growers and consumers alike.
We Feed The World
We Feed The World is an Austrian film (with english subtitles) about the globalisation of food production. From tomatoes drip-fed nutrients and whose roots never touch the earth to factory famed chickens hung, slaughtered and packaged on a conveyer belt system this film will open your eyes to the sorry state of world agriculture. Plenty of reasons to source more of your food from local producers. Click on the link above to view the film which lasts about 90 minutes.
Whole Foods Market to open in Kensington
Whole Foods Market, a US based company whose superstores sell local produce and organic foods, are to open their London flagship store in Kensington High Street on 6th June. The 80,000 sq ft supermarket will be on three levels in the former Barkers department store. Whole Foods plan to source much of their produce from UK growers and producers. Visit their website for more information.
Local London Farm Saved
College Farm in Finchley, North London, has been saved from potential future development. The farm was acquired by the Highways Agency in a land swap deal dating back to 1972 when the Department of Transport planned to widen the North Circular Road. The farm, which dates back to the 14th Century, has now been purchased by the College Farm Trust. Plans are already being considered to restock the farm with livestock, build a museum and educational facility and reopen it to the public and school children as an example of a working farm.
Source: Edgware & Mill Hill Times, November 2006
Local Food is Miles Better
Farmers Weekly magazine launches a nationwide "Food Miles" campaign. Their aim is to educate consumers of the economic and environmental benefits of buying locally produced food. One of the magazine's food miles facts shows that the "Tonnage of food moved within the UK has increased by 23% since 1978 and the average distance has jumped by 50%". Something to consider next time you're stuck behind fleets of lorries trundling up and down our motorways. Not only does buying locally produced food help the local economy it would also help save an estimated £2.1bn in environmental and congestion costs.
An independent survey carried out on behalf of Farmers Weekly found that "too many people know much too little about what they eat, where it comes from and why that matters". However, 85% of people polled thought it "important to local communities for restaurants and pubs to buy locally produced food". To read more and discover why you should be buying more locally produced food visit the Food Miles campaign website.
Source: Farmers Weekly, May 2006
Sourcing In The City
Chef Oliver Rowe opened his new King's Cross restaurant, Konstam at the Prince Albert, in a former pub earlier this year. Since opening its doors, he has been championing the cause for lower food miles by attempting to source his ingredients from within the London area. Rowe's self-imposed local-sourcing rule is sometimes broken when it comes to serving foreign exotics such as coffee or using lemons and various spices. But overall he has found most of what he needs from within the M25 - "There is a lady who makes honey in Brixton, people who cure sausages in Kensal Rise, and Walthamstow reservoir is full of trout", says Rowe.
Source: Times Online, October 2005 & Time Out, May 2006
London's Groceries Could Get Greener.
Plans to build a food hub linking small producers and suppliers to London's vast food market have been unveiled. The aim is to build a distribution point in east London, allowing food providers to buy locally grown food. It would mean these providers - including independent shops, restaurants and public sector caterers - could buy more food grown in or near London.
Source: The Londoner, March 2006
Sink your teeth into a Tiger.
A new variety of tomato called Tiger Tom, which is stripy with a purple centre, is the latest in designer tomatoes to hit the retail shelves this month. Appealing to the eye and the taste buds it is said to be sweeter than conventional red varieties. Another newcomer is Strawmato, which its growers claim is best enjoyed dipped in melted dark chocolate. The British Tomato Growers Association report that less than half the tomato varieties now produced in the UK are of the conventional red type.
Source: Daily Mail, 2nd May 2006
Beware The World's Hottest Chilli - From Dorset.
Two farmers claim to have grown the world's hottest chilli pepper - in the West Country. Joy and Michael Michaud say their crop is so hot they have to sell it with a health warning. They sent a sample of their Dorset naga to a US laboratory where it registered 923,000 on the Scoville heat scale. Experts consider 100,000 to be far too hot for most palates. Read more on this story.
Source: Daily Mail, 1st April 2006