Meals Using Only Local Produce.

Icewytch

In looking around the threads, most folks seem to use, in cooking and to spin out supplies, things like lentils, pasta etc that aren`t, so far as I know, grown in the UK.
It made me wonder about the food I buy and cook, and I was quite suprised at just how much of it isn`t anywhere like local. And that if I was forced to only rely on local food, my diet would be severely restricted. :eek:
Even things like good old HP sauce would go! Eek...

Where I live, the only produce is as follows...seafood (I`m allergic ) and fish, beef and lamb, barley and oats, cabbage, turnip and what folks can grow in their garden. Oh, and tatties!
I know that even with that, I could eat pretty healthily. But it`d rapidly get boring!
I wondered if others had ever looked at local produce and thought about living on that and that alone? Have you looked at your food store and ruled out, in your imagination, anything that isn`t produced in the UK, and seen what would be left?
Does anyone have any recipe ideas or links to some that rely only on local produce?

Hardup_Hester

I did watch a few episodes of a TV show about a London chef who was trying to source only local produce, but that the nearest I've got.

Olliebeak

Icewytch wrote: »

In looking around the threads, most folks seem to use, in cooking and to spin out supplies, things like lentils, pasta etc that aren`t, so far as I know, grown in the UK.
It made me wonder about the food I buy and cook, and I was quite suprised at just how much of it isn`t anywhere like local. And that if I was forced to only rely on local food, my diet would be severely restricted. :eek:
Even things like good old HP sauce would go! Eek...

Where I live, the only produce is as follows...seafood (I`m allergic ) and fish, beef and lamb, barley and oats, cabbage, turnip and what folks can grow in their garden. Oh, and tatties!
I know that even with that, I could eat pretty healthily. But it`d rapidly get boring!
I wondered if others had ever looked at local produce and thought about living on that and that alone? Have you looked at your food store and ruled out, in your imagination, anything that isn`t produced in the UK, and seen what would be left?
Does anyone have any recipe ideas or links to some that rely only on local produce?

Hello Icewytch - looks like you're in northern Scotland?

I suppose it would all depend on what you're describing as 'locally sourced'. 5 mile radius/10 miles/50 miles. If you DO have to travel a distance to get foodstuffs, then it has to be better (for the carbon footprint and miles travelled) to buy as much as possible in bulk and then freeze, dry, or preserve in some other way.

What about rabbit, game, local growers with greenhouses (tomatoes, courgettes, marrows, salad stuffs), brambles, raspberries, kale, growing your own herbs in containers on window ledges? And of course, that most elusive of creatures - the haggis .

Tatties and mince (or haggis) with carrot and swede - mmm - local AND delicious .

Hawthorn

I have, and it is scary.

I doubt that the UK has enough land to feed us all anyhow, truth be told, so some level of non uk food will have to be consumed.

thriftlady_2

I've thought about this quite a lot. But then I remember coffee, tea, chocolate, lemons, wine, decent bread flour (hard wheat flour grows better in North America), spices, olive oil.

I also remember that even the Vikings were importing spices and other quite exotic foods from afar.

On the other hand if it is something that grows well here like apples, raspberries, meat, milk and cheese then I buy local.

Charis

There's been an excellent Radio 4 series on this very subject.

Called the 'Fife Diet' it follows the progress of people trying to eat local produce (aka 'locavoring' ) and charts their successes and failures. The general consensus is to try for 80% local food, 10% regional and 10% from abroad (eg tea, coffee, spices, bananas, chocolate, etc) I can't find the actual proportions on the site atm, just dredged them up from memory but hope they are correct. You don't have to give up your favourite things, buying from Fairtrade benefits the growers and solves the problem of not giving custom to countries that might be relying on the trade with 'wealthier' countries.

Food choices seem to revolve around the fruit & veg harvest or veg market/organic veggie box. Meals are planned around fruit and veg (with meat or fish for non vegetarians) and as a result less processed foods, sugar and imported/refined oils are used. At least one couple have improved their diet, lost a little weight and saved quite a bit on their food bills.

http://fifediet.wordpress.com/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/foodprogramme.shtml

OrkneyStar

I am trying to eat more local produce (here this can include steak/mince based, pork, lamb, bacon, haddock, [strike]herring[/strike], [STRIKE]shell fish[/STRIKE], tatties, carrots, turnips, cabbages, breads, bakery produce, milk, cheese, cream, eggs, strawberries, tomatoes- obviously some things are seasonal!). The one with the line through I don't like! I try to get these things locally when I need them. Other things which are not produced locally I either try to buy locally (so I am supporting local traders and using less diesel, less from the air miles point of view), or get them at the supermarket when I am in town anyway (try to make no more than 1 trip here a week again in terms of using less fuel).
hth

mardatha

I can live for a lot of time on porridge and home made soup using vegs grown here. Plus mince/stews with loads of veg and potatoes added. I dont eat much exotic stuff.
Unless pavlovas are exotic....slurp .

Caterina

I looked into the Fife diet but as an almost 100% vegetarian (with very rare occasional fish meals) I think I would really not fare all too well.

So I try to buy local and organic as far as possible but I forgive myself for rice, soya products, avocados and spices!

Caterina