Organic food in supermarkets

Edwardia

Sainsbury's SO organic chestnut mushrooms 250g
were 1.20 now £1 to 22/01/13
Sainsbury's SO organic dwarf beans 250g
1.50 or any 2 for 2.50 to 22/01/13
Sainsbury's SO organic tenderstem broccoli 200g
was £2 now 1.80 to 22/01/13
Heinz Classics organic cream of tomato soup 400g
6 for £4 to 29/01/13
Rude Health fruity date organic porridge 500g
was 2.99 now 2.39 to 29/01/13
Sainsbury's SO organic diced beef 400g
£4 or 3 for £10 to 24/09/13
Sainsbury's SO organic lean beef mince 400g
£4 or 3 for £10 to 24/09/13
Sainsbury's SO organic British beef mince 500g
3.48 or any 2 for £6 to 27/08/13
Sainsbury's So organic free range British pork mince 454g
3.50 or 2 for £ to 27/08/13
Sainsbury's SO organic white bread 400g
90p or any 2 for 1.50 to 12/03/13
Sainsbury's SO organic malted grain bread 400g
90p or any 2 for 1.50 to 12/03/13
Sainsbury's SO organic wholemeal bread 400g
90p or any 2 for 1.50 to 12/03/13
Sainsbury's SO organic mild Cheddar 270g
2.50 or any 2 for 4.50 to 27/03/13
Sainsbury's SO organic Red Leicester 270g
2.50 or any 2 for 4.50 to 27/03/13
Sainsbury's SO organic British mature Farmhouse Cheddar 270g
2.80 or any 2 for 4.50 to 27/03/13
NEW Sainsbury's SO organic Extra Mature Cheddar 270g
2.90 or any 2 for 4.50 to 27/03/13
Pip organic cloudy apple juice 750ml
2.79 or 2 for £4 to 22/01/13

Sainsbury's SO organic semi-skimmed/whole fresh milk 4 pints/2.27L 1.79 or 2 for £3 to 19/11/13..the milk wars continue..and so do the yogurt wars with Waitrose doing one Rachel's yogurt on offer to 2014 so I'm not repeating post after post of yogurt sorry !

Edwardia

In the UK GM food can be sold IF it complies with EU regs and is labelled. Some vegetable oils are already being sold which are made from GM crops, evidently and brands to look out for are Pride and KTC.

Animals and poultry fed with GM crops/feed which are in the food chain don't have to be labelled as being fed with GM crops. The only way to be sure you're not eating them is to eat organic.

The fruit I can eat, having diabetes, is all thin-skinned stuff. OH wants me to buy organic everything I can so I do even his bananas. I know that going organic helps my health as I see the blood test results.

For fresh stuff I have found it really difficult locally, but for tinned/bottled organic eg baked beans, rice pudding, soup, ketchup (all for OH) I can pick it up in ASDA or Sainsbury's.

Kirri

^ I wish meat produced from animals fed on GM crops was labelled, wonder if so many would buy it then?!

I'm not convinced that pesticides etc can just be washed off so easily, veg must be sprayed constantly to get it so perfect with fairly harsh chemicals, what % penetrates the plants?? Long term who knows what they are all doing to our health, maybe in years to come things will change but unfortunately people want cheap food from supermarkets but it all comes at a price, whether to our health, in additives to prolong shelf life or chemicals for higher yields or to the animals kept in appalling conditions in battery type farming.

berbastrike - do you have anywhere you could grow some of your own to offset the costs of buying?? I've found this has really lowered my food spends.

Cooking from scratch rather than buying ready meals/foods lowers the cost too so makes it a bit more bearable if only buying the organic basic food items.


This just posted on the comp boards, win veg boxes - worth a try!

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4366849

Edwardia

Kirri, according to mysupermarket, it's on offer at Tesco 2 for 3.25 to 02/01/13 instead of 2.20 each. If you miss that, the normal Sainsbury's price is 2.09 and 2.20 at Tesco, Waitrose and Ocado.

Green & Black's organic Fairtrade hot chocolate drink 300g on offer at Tesco to 02/01/13 for £3. Normal price is 3.59 Tesco, Sainsbury's, Ocado, Waitrose and 3.58 ASDA.

Re labelling, I called DEFRA they said supermarkets don't have to label GM fed animals, poultry and products from because EU regulations allow that. When I raised it with MP he was really surprised.

rufydoofyM

My A & C delivery arrived this morning at 4.55am as expected and being an insomniac I greeted the delivery guy, thanked him for bringing all my lovely goodies and wished him a happy new year. Think I startled him, but even at that time in the morning he was friendly and cheerful. I was looking forward to trying the apples and couldn't resist as I unpacked Wow, the crimson crisp apples are what I remember apples tasting like when I was a kid (a long long time ago) Immediately went on line and added to next weeks order. £3.49 a kg (13 small delicious apples)
Have been looking at the other sites mentioned and am quite impressed by riverford but are they as good as A & C ? does anyone use both ?
We really love cheese and I am looking for good organic Cheshire, Lancashire or Wensleydale. Other than supermarket prepacked stuff does anyone know of companies that deliver ? All I can find is cheddar, stilton, brie and various goats cheese.

If anyone is close to Cambridge or Northampton this maybe of interest. but they don't deliver. Somethings look expensive, but there is alot that seems good value.

http://www.dailybread.co.uk/cambridge-home

http://www.dailybread.co.uk/images/cambridge/product_list.pdf

System

Kirri wrote: »

berbastrike - do you have anywhere you could grow some of your own to offset the costs of buying?? I've found this has really lowered my food spends.

hi,
No but I still live with my parents...
when I get my own house, I would like to have my own hens and grow my own fruit and vegetables

rufydoofyM

Having become so disappointed with the quality of bread and rising cost I decided to start making it again. We get the fresh yeast from Tesco (only go in about once a month) I manage to blag about 8/9 oz instead of the usual 1 oz for 1p I have problems with my wrists so taught oh to kneed and now he has taken over all bread production. I am now banished from the kitchen during production as I get in his way etc. He/we decided to bake totally organic and he has tried various flours. So far we have tried Waitrose, Duchy, Doves, and Marriages. Marriages seems to produce the best results by far and has been on offer at ocado so I have stocked up.
Has anyone else discovered flour variations and have any recommendations ?

Kirri

rufydoofyM wrote: »

Having become so disappointed with the quality of bread and rising cost I decided to start making it again. We get the fresh yeast from Tesco (only go in about once a month) I manage to blag about 8/9 oz instead of the usual 1 oz for 1p I have problems with my wrists so taught oh to kneed and now he has taken over all bread production. I am now banished from the kitchen during production as I get in his way etc. He/we decided to bake totally organic and he has tried various flours. So far we have tried Waitrose, Duchy, Doves, and Marriages. Marriages seems to produce the best results by far and has been on offer at ocado so I have stocked up.
Has anyone else discovered flour variations and have any recommendations ?

I too like the Marriages bread flour but can only seem to get it from Ocado?? If buying in a shop I only usually get Waitrose organic - I like to use a mix of strong white and malted. Morrisons organic was ok too as was Doves. Currently using Shipton Mill organic and good as it came in a 2.5kg bag though was probably more expensive. I've used some other smaller brands who sell through farmer's markets but it tends to be much fresher flour than the supermarkets stock so uses a lot less water which can make it tricky to get it right!

I only use the Doves Farm orange packet dried yeast 99p, have never tried fresh.. I do cheat and use a bread machine for the kneading - but I always take it out and finish it in the oven as seems so much better.

Seriously hate all those supermarket sliced loaves!

Kirri

berbastrike wrote: »

hi,
No but I still live with my parents...
when I get my own house, I would like to have my own hens and grow my own fruit and vegetables

Bit difficult to dig up their garden then...! maybe try some stuff in pots then you can take it if you move. I'm only in a flat so have an allotment but really saves money. I want hens too..

rufydoofyM

Kirri wrote: »

I too like the Marriages bread flour but can only seem to get it from Ocado?? If buying in a shop I only usually get Waitrose organic - I like to use a mix of strong white and malted. Morrisons organic was ok too as was Doves. Currently using Shipton Mill organic and good as it came in a 2.5kg bag though was probably more expensive. I've used some other smaller brands who sell through farmer's markets but it tends to be much fresher flour than the supermarkets stock so uses a lot less water which can make it tricky to get it right!

I only use the Doves Farm orange packet dried yeast 99p, have never tried fresh.. I do cheat and use a bread machine for the kneading - but I always take it out and finish it in the oven as seems so much better.

Seriously hate all those supermarket sliced loaves!

We have a bread maker but were never happy with the results and now only use it for jam making when I get reduced fruit at the supermarket. I/we have tried various dried yeasts but fresh just seems to produce better results and is what I used all those years ago when dad used to bake and taught me.
On the subject of hens, I wish, If only we had a garden large enough. Perhaps we'll win the lottery and have a small holding and live the good life one day, Oh what a dream........