a month without supermarket - new challenge for 2011 starts at post 1013

Jadek

I would love to be able to do something like this, it sounds like a good idea, I'd love to know how it comes along.

I live in inner London too so I can understand how difficult it is likely to be! I recently looked up my nearest farm shop and as I don't drive it'd take me an hour to get to it!

In terms of the bread, how about investing in a bread maker and make your own? That way you can control what goes into it and you'll know it's wholesome. I'm not sure about buying the ingredients in places other than a supermarket but I'm sure you could buy flour and yeast and the like in small ethnic markets quite easily.

I'm intrigued, what are the main arguments that have made you decide on this? If I were to do this it would be to the view of saving more money and eating better quality produce.

Pink.

Hi Bex,

This thread has lots of good advice and may help:

a month without supermarket challenge..here goes....

I'll add your thread to it later to keep the ideas together.

Pink

BexInLondon

Eeeek a very good point! We can get milk delivered but only by the big conglomerate, so it doesn't seem like there's much point in that. Abel and Cole will deliver and they charge £0.99 for a litre compared to £0.91 for Tesco organic and £0.76 for Tesco non-organic. Given that we don't use a lot of milk I think the extra 23p a week is ok.

Thanks for the reminder to add to my A&C order. I might check out whether the butcher does milk.

becky_rtw

You can pop down to Borough for farm shop stuff on your doorstep Jadek

Also there are some great butchers in Pimlico. There's also a great little market in Chelsea by Daylsford Organics on Saturdays (dont know if its there in the week - it might be )

There's definitely a few milkmen still around - I see one delivering in Hugh Street in Victoria in the mornings...

Fish you can probably find from someone based at Billingsgate - but that seems to be the toughest one in London for me...

I do supermarket shop but I like good food too!

BexInLondon

Jadek wrote: »

I would love to be able to do something like this, it sounds like a good idea, I'd love to know how it comes along.

I live in inner London too so I can understand how difficult it is likely to be! I recently looked up my nearest farm shop and as I don't drive it'd take me an hour to get to it!

In terms of the bread, how about investing in a bread maker and make your own? That way you can control what goes into it and you'll know it's wholesome. I'm not sure about buying the ingredients in places other than a supermarket but I'm sure you could buy flour and yeast and the like in small ethnic markets quite easily.

I'm intrigued, what are the main arguments that have made you decide on this? If I were to do this it would be to the view of saving more money and eating better quality produce.

Thanks JadeK - I do actually have a breadmaker lurking at the back of the cupboard. We only get through about half a loaf a week but yes, I do plan to use it.

In terms of the main arguments - for me there are quite a few important things that altogether add up enough to finally conquer my laziness. The environmental impact is enormous, both in terms of transport and wasted goods. I also feel (and this is more tenuous and personal) that as a nation we're moving really far away from real food, and I feel like supermarket shopping plays a part in this. You can buy foods from all over the world yet somehow we have less and less idea of the building blocks of food - what is lamb shoulder or beef skirt? When do leeks grow? Biodiversity is damaged too... to most kids of today there are 2-4 varieties of apples in the world!

Finally, I am not happy with the way supermarkets treat their suppliers. Business in business, and that's fine, but I don't want to be part of the machine that treats those who do something so important so badly! I worry that as an island nation we should be doing a lot more to preserve our ability to feed ourselves from our very fertile soil.

Then there's the effect on the high st as more and more local shops (staffed by people who know their produce well and can help out with cooking tips) are replaced by massive superstores full of well-meaning teenagers who don't know their cod from their celeriac and can only point vaguely at recipe cards. I'm scared that my kids will grow up in a country where there are only 4-5 places to buy food!

BexInLondon

I am ashamed to admit that I actually live a 2 minute walk from Billingsgate!! I've heard rumours that you have to be there at 4:10 am though - anyone know whether this is true?

becky_rtw

Well it doesnt open till 5am anyway
http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/corporation/LGNL_Services/Business/Markets/Billingsgate+Market/

I keep meaning to go down and have a look - its open on Saturday so you could go and go back to bed!!!

BexInLondon

5-8:30... I guess I could wander over on a Tuesday morning at 8 a.m. Would mean getting up slightly earlier once a week but that's life. Has anyone actually been? I'm thinking it could be a bit like flower markets in that if you go at the end all that's left is some mouldy foliage (or in this case, sorry-looking kippers).

Pink.

Hi Bex,

I just remembered this older thread that might help too:

OS food shopping in London SE5/SE15

Pink

artichoke

Hi

Does anyone want to join me in resurrecting this challenge from previous years?

I want to try and find alternative local and ethical suppliers rather than relying on the supermarkets - although i live on a very tight budget so another main factor for me in this is in lowering / maintaining a lifestyle of low consumption and low spend....

art