Higher Welfare Meat - cheapest/best value

divalou

Hi guys,
My boyfriend and I want to keep our shopping bill as low as possible as he will soon be quitting his job to follow his dream (eek!).
But I don't want to buy cheaper and lower quality meat. I already have issues with m conscience when buying British meat as I'm aware it's still not great on the welfare standards.
I will only buy free range eggs and try and get FR chicken when we can afford it but would like to buy the rest of our meat as high welfare as we can afford.
I live in Hereford in the West Midlands and I'm guessing local is better but I've had problems with a few butchers that I've used.
Any tips/ideas would be gratefully received and also tips on how to make meat go further - bulking out meals etc for my very carnivorous boyfriend
Thanks in advance!
Lou x

Edwardia

Suggest trying this website for local places.
http://www.bigbarn.co.uk/

pawsies

Rosewood farm is ethical and similar to supermarket prices. Only thing is you'll get 5kg of the stuff so need to organise your freezer!

http://www.grassfeddexterbeef.co.uk/

Elsbells21

I know it's not ideal - but quorn mince is usually a good sub for things like spag bol, chilli con carne and cheaper than the free-range versions, that way you don't have to compromise on your ethics. Alternatively you can trawl your local supermarkets on an every other day basis and see what they have reduced, just put it straight in to the freezer. I've picked up free-range chicken from there for about £3 (which was about £3 off).

tweegirl

We've used these people in the past:-

prenyderwen89@yahoo.co.uk

- top quality rare breed free range meat - they'll sell in half animals or smaller quantities, really helpful people. They've usually got lamb, pork, beef, duck, cockerel (try it as an alternative to supermarket chicken and you'll be converted!) and I'm told they're just about to branch out into goat meat! In addition, they very often have venison and rabbit available.

They also do the best dark brown welsummer free range eggs and fabulous free range duck eggs and they always have laying birds available for sale if you fancy being a bit self-sufficient!

The best bit is they're not a million miles from you - they're based in South Wales, just over the border down the road from Monmouth, so could be well worth a visit to stock up.

Mojisola

divalou wrote: »

I already have issues with m conscience when buying British meat as I'm aware it's still not great on the welfare standards.

Why do you think this? British animal welfare standards are higher than those in most other countries.

Lip_Stick

Mojisola wrote: »

Why do you think this? British animal welfare standards are higher than those in most other countries.

I'm wondering that too. I thought we're one of the best when it comes to welfare of animals in meat production.

DUKE

I sometimes get minced beef from the butcher if it's buy 1 llb get one free. If not I buy 2x 500g packs from Lidl. I bulk mine out by adding veg & maybe a tin of baked beans or chilli beans, anything really. Then I freeze it for a later date. When we're ready to eat I defrost & add the sauce according to whether I'm doing spag bol, shep pie, or chilli. Depending on how big your portions are you can get anything from 4-6 meals out of this.

maman

Aldi to FR chicken and eggs.

divalou

Thanks for replies!!

I know British standards are generally considered better than most countries, and if I buy "standard" meat I try to ensure its British. I just know there is still a lot to be desired.

I just watched "The Pig Bang Theory" documentary about intensive pig farms basically exploding in America. they showed footage of the fires in one barn and you could hear the pigs squealing as they were being cooked alive! o_O enough to make you veggie. The cause of the fire was basically the different technologies used in intensive farming. Poor piggies.