Anyone trying to rely less on supermarkets and buy locally?

[smallglassbottle]

Does anyone try to source local food, buy online etc. as opposed to shopping at supermarkets? I've learned this week that the supermarkets are going down the variable pricing route with price increases during popular times and for popular items. I think Waitrose are the first place to start this. Supermarkets already have two tier pricing with loyalty card holders paying RRP and non card holders paying an inflated price. I choose not to have any loyalty cards because I don't want my details shared with third parties which earns money for the supermarket and it also disadvantages people who pay in cash. Details can also be hacked, like with the coop and M&S last year I think it was. I find supermarket food is poor quality now and I can't eat processed food anyway due to illness, so I'm mostly on fruit, vegetables, nuts, lentils and dairy.

We get a veggie box online, which also includes eggs, cheese and yoghurts. I'd like to support local farmers and eat seasonally. There's a dairy near me which sells milk and you provide your own bottle. With the prices in the supermarkets going up so much, these options aren't that much different in terms of price. Some of the farm shops are too expensive, but we have a monthly farmers market which we plan on going to. We also order game meat online. Venison is cheaper than beef now and there's no factory farming/slaughter processes involved.

I've ordered kitchen roll and toilet rolls, tea, toothpaste, shampoo bar, pet food and litter, nuts/seeds, lentils, spreads, washing up liquid etc. online. I don't have children at home, so meal planning is easier. Dh makes bread and fruit bread in the bread maker. I can't eat commercial bakery products due to them containing palm oil which sets my pancreas off. I plan on buying as much as possible locally or online from small retailers. It's not working out much more expensive, but some things are more expensive so we don't buy those.

I fully understand that many people are really busy with working and kids and what not and supermarkets are convenient. I was just wondering if anyone else is trying to move away from them and source alternatives.

I used to take it for granted that supermarkets were convenient - until I gave up my car! Now, although I’m surrounded by them, the thought of dragging heavy shopping through the streets, or on a bus, is strangely unattractive. And waiting outside Tesco or Waitrose for a cab is depressing.

Online grocery shopping can be as cheap as you want it to be. And in fifteen years of having groceries delivered I’ve never once had my food delivery abandoned, ruined or stolen on my doorstep. You don’t run that risk with supermarket/Ocado deliveries anyway, as they come within the time slot you’ve requested. Ocado texts you endless updates and lets you know when they’re just about to arrive, so you can be standing on your doorstep to greet them. (When I first started using them I lived in a seventh floor apartment - the deliverer would ring the bell downstairs, I’d buzz them in, they’d arrive at my apartment door.) With Riverford, on your allotted delivery day, which is the same every week, they give you an estimated two hour window. You can say whether you want them to ring your doorbell or leave the box at your door or in a safe place. If the latter, they text you the minute they’ve left it. The more problematic deliveries are those sent via Royal Mail. I have once had a Hodmedod’s parcel mis-delivered. (They sorted it out.) Anything at the mercy of the postal service is a bit vulnerable, yes, but, as I say - no disasters thus far.

If you use a decent supplier you should generally be able to trust Use By dates. And complain if they’re unreasonably short. Best Before dates are largely meaningless. Same with the quality of fresh produce. And while I acknowledge the comparatively terrifying cost of individual items from Riverford, I’m constantly amazed at how long their things last in the fridge. (At the moment the general minimum spend is £20, unless you order a pre-set box - the lowest price for those is currently £16.70. And you obviously do not have to order every week.)

My grocery shopping is very much predicated on the knowledge that food in Britain is sometimes suspiciously cheap - and someone is suffering for that.

nah, did online shopping during lockdown from various stores (although admittedly not Ocado because they don’t operate here) and there was nearly always something missing, BB4 before I wanted to eat it or unsuitable replacements. You do you but I’m going to the supermarket @Sesquipedahlia

We haven’t got any farm shops or butchers near us. I generally just go to M&S for meat, fruit and veg

Re-posting my link from above, in case it’s of use to anyone. It’s a database of independent food suppliers - not just farms! Cheese, coffee beans, wholefoods.

Are you familiar with the Farms to Feed Us database? It's actually life changing. (Link below, ignore donations request and go straight to database. View in landscape on something larger than your phone screen.

https://farmstofeedus.org/

the sun and various other tabloids have spun a hysterical narrative that is not based on anything

But if we didn’t believe stuff like that MN wouldn’t exist 🤣🤣