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

Gigervamp

kittie wrote: »

I am absolutely jumping for joy here. I just made an order with local food and they have sevilles for 95p a kg, an absolutely AMAZING price. I have ordered milk, eggs, 2 brace of stuffed bacon wrapped pheasants and loads of other beautiful foods, including venison and thick organic yoghurts etc. It is all under £60 delivered. What fantastic value. It is people like them who should get the new year honours, bringing local food to us and helping the local producers to keep going and all at a truly realistic cost :j

That sounds great, do you have a link please?

Pitlanepiglet

Gigervamp wrote: »

That sounds great, do you have a link please?

From Kittie's earlier post I think it's http://www.localfooddirect.co.uk/ but if you're south wales (as per your profile) I think you're out of area.

They look a really good supplier, I might ring them and see if they can stretch as far as us...

lil_me

Hi everyone, keeping to it as much as I can but I have used the Co-op. I did need some bakeware which I'd have normally got in Sainsbugs but Co-op had 3 for £10 of quite nice quality.

I have noticed I get HUGE dirty looks from locals when I buy a lot in the Co-op, just one shallow trolley but the curses from those who use it as a 'pop in' for one or 2 things. Well what a shame I'm supporting them more and they can do 'those looks' as much as they want

I popped to the greengrocers in Durham today, not bad at all, in fact there is 2! I haven't spotted a butchers on the main road, don't think there is one. I chose the one closest and got......

8 apples £1 , 8 pears £1, 10 kiwis 50p, 3 packs of baby plum tomatoes for £1, 4 small peppers £1.69, dozen FR local eggs £2, raspberries 80p, they're the prices I can remember then the potatoes (enough for 6) cucumber, 8 bananas, 7 mushrooms and it came to £12.04

anguk

lil_me - there's a butchers and fishmongers in Durham's indoor market.

Just remembered there's a lovely cheese stall too. I haven't been into Durham for a while, I might have a trip there this week but I don't like the parking charges.

lil_me

Ang we can't drive into Durham without walking further than the bus depot due to the size of my car so we got the bus today which is still expensive at £6 return for me and the boys. If I wasn't going anyway I would not have gone in as I don't particularly like it, too many charity shops, that might sound terrible but when you want to go 'normal' shopping it's boring wandering past what must be 7 of them? I do like my farm shop butcher in Bearpark so it's not a huge issue. I know there is a fishmonger in the market, I could smell it when I had a meeting at the town hall last week :rotfl: but was unsure if the butchers was still there. I didn't need anything that day and took half the catering home due to left over so I didn't pop in. Houghton is canny and there is free parking around the highstreet too.

2 bloomin' Tescos then another at Gilesgate, I noticed the north road one today, I hate that company so much!!!!

Towels/cups etc I can't use the cups but the towels go in with our dark towels washer load or similar, soaking can be done with a lidded container of napisan in the bathroom/tucked under the bed if necessary. I've got the implant now so haven't had them since yay!

Gigervamp

Pitlanepiglet wrote: »

From Kittie's earlier post I think it's http://www.localfooddirect.co.uk/ but if you're south wales (as per your profile) I think you're out of area.

They look a really good supplier, I might ring them and see if they can stretch as far as us...

Wow, that's a really good site. Shame it's not a bit nearer (although on a clear day, I can see the Somerset coast from here!)

anguk

lil_me wrote: »

2 bloomin' Tescos then another at Gilesgate, I noticed the north road one today, I hate that company so much!!!!

I didn't know there was one on north road! Last time I went into Durham I was gobsmacked to see one just down from the marketplace, I think it used to be Woolworths? The one at Gilesgate is ridiculously huge.

I wish we still had the Co-op, they had some smashing reductions, ours was bought out by Tesco. :mad:

ubamother

it may be more difficult to avoid the big supermarkets than you think - for example, the small convenience store chain One Stop is owned by Tesco - presumably you don't have to compete with the 'competition' if you own it!

JustKeepSwimming_2

ubamother wrote: »

it may be more difficult to avoid the big supermarkets than you think - for example, the small convenience store chain One Stop is owned by Tesco - presumably you don't have to compete with the 'competition' if you own it!

Wow - I didn't know this & as far as I can see it isn't mentioned on the One Stop website, although their logos are certainly MrT'ish. Then I found a link to the OFT website that confirms it (not that I didn't believe you, just couldn't believe I'd missed that info :eek:). I'd been using the not so local One Stop very occasionally thinking I wasn't giving MrT my money when I was actually giving them more due to their higher prices :mad:.

This challenge isn't as easy as I thought - just makes me that little bit more determined though.

merlin68

Well, almost there, have set up a monthly meatbox from well hung meat a fruit and veg delivery from sunrise organic and milk and eggs from the milkman. I'm struggling with decaffinated teabags, rocks organic squash and organic butter and cheese but mil lives near two big farm shops so is going to try there for me as she comes round once a week now.
I'm going to get organic flour and oats from marraiges to make bread etc myself. The cat food will come from a place on the A12 and dad will get my toilet tolls from the cash and carry.
I make all my own cleaning stuff and have the washing machine balls and a mooncup.
The only thing i am stuck with is dishwasher tablets.