I really want to avoid supermarkets as much as I can because I think they are deceitful places!

[LauraNorder]

After watching channel 4's food programme last night and finding out Oakham chickens don't come from Oakham, there's no such place as Willow Farm, most of our cheddar is imported I have decided to go local as much as I can.

Does anyone else do this and how easy/difficult do you find it? Is it going to be loads more expensive?

Put a message up at your local allotment, it is likely that some people will have more produce than they will eat and would be happy to sell it at a bargain price.

You are not usually allowed to sell allotment produce.

You can give it away!

I missed this programme and as a foodie I'm pretty up on these marketing exploits.

Making packaging look like its from a cottage industry. "Pork Farms" using the word "farm" or a persons name "Janes Cakes" is well known to draw in customers. Unfortunatley its all processed in a mass factory, by lowest imcome some foriegn operatives. Using the most basic ingedients and in some cases the lowest allowed minimum content.

I get all my eggs from a farm on the side of the road. Its not difficult to stop and pop in. I hate buying eggs from the supermarket as all of these have gone through factories, mass distribution units etc.

Farm shops may seem expensive but the quality is there and better the hung meat less water so the cut dont shrink so much so cheap is in many cases false economy. Buying cheaper cuts always pays off. (last night I used neck of lamb for a hot pot - how cheap!)

You can buy direct off the farm, I used to do beef, lamb, pork, turkeys, geese and delivery free of charge. Many farms have a gate service too. Food fares are brill especially for things like goose fat (at least its british), poultry,jars etc.

I struggled for years trying to get my produce noticied (won awards too)but couldnt afford all the marketing and in our area with have every supermarket under the sun. Beleive me there are thousnads of fantastic on the net or local business dying for your trade. Google buy local.

Big freezer is a must, buy bulk saves money.

Even so, I still supermarkrt shop as its impossible but I dont get drawn in by the clever marketing and I can read between the lines.

Just interested- how do you know that your greengrocer/butcher/Asian supermarket is less deceitful/more environmentally friendly than the supermarket?

I prefer to shop from the COOP, because the local greengrocer never gives country of origin and the Asian supermarket seems to specialise in vegetables and fruit flown in from a long distance, even in cases where it hardly seems necessary. And the Asian supermarket has no organic stuff. Have to admit I do still shop there- because they have a wide range-but not for unselfish purposes.

I agree. The entire issue is a minefield.

TBH I dont think consumers have got a cat n hells chance of shopping ethically even if they want to.

I am from a farming background myself and old enough to remember the local butcher disappearing from our village because EU rules made it impossible for local small slaughter houses to continue in business. When I was very young, I remember taking cattle, pigs and sheep just a few miles up the road to market to sell to local butchers who my Dad knew personally.

I remember when that all suddenly changed. Loading pigs onto giant trucks at 5 am to be transported hundreds of miles to be slaughtered in Birmingham on contract for supermarkets. Was that ethical and as it green? I doubt it because of the stress caused to the animals and the vast amounts of oil consumed moving the animals and the meat around in plastic packaging afterwards. That is what consumers want though and the supermarkets were/are very dominant buyers. Even organic food is not as ethical as most people think. It is stil transported over vast distances and may not even be produced with high animal welfare standards.

If possible, I think the best people can do is to try and shop locally from a trusted source that you know produces locally. The number of boxes of Spanish produce sold at our local 'Farmers Market' does not make any sense to me and is verging on the criminal in the way it is presented to people as if it is 'local' produce.

Beenbeta I didn't think that 'proper' farmers markets are allowed to sell any food that comes from more than a certain number of miles 50?? away. certainly not from Spain

ppeatfruit - thats what I thought but TBH I used to walk through at 6.30 am and saw the stuff being unloaded. The empty 'Spanish' boxes were quickly put back in the vans and then driven away before it opened. Passing off and adulterating food is possibly the second oldest profession.

I have some friends who have an organic farm and I know they really do the job and sell by mail order so I know exactly what they are doing. Jolly expensive though and TBH not really a viable way of feeding a nation. The UK has imported the majority of its food from well before WWI and I dont think that will ever change.

That is disillusioning Beenbeta; IMO there is always a difference in taste and quality in the fruit from e.g. Spain and fresh local stuff. As you say dishonest trading doesn't just apply to supermkts.

In Ireland most towns still have a good range of local shops although they are becoming lesser with each tesco, etc that opens. In our town thankfully there are 3 fruit&veg, 6butchers and 5 bakerys with a fish stall also on fridays. People are very supportive of their local traders not to mention the quality of produce being far superior to a supermarket. There is not a bakery in the town that doesnt have fresh bread, wheaten, pancakes, scones etc every morning.

Local butchers are great, however, not always cheaper than supermarkets. Our village butcher sells fillet steak at 54 pounds a kg and shin of beef at 12 pounds/kg compared to Waitrose fillet that costs 43 quid/kg. (Had this very discussion with friend yesterday)
That's what you get for living in SE I suppose, sadly.

The local butchers around here are rubbish, I have to use a rare breeds butchers in Raglan Nr Abergavenny.

Most everyday butchers buy their produce from wholesale meat suppliers so the carcuss could come from anywhere in UK and not necessarily freerange. They buy these in a knock down prices too. They can be hybid breeds and not hung either hence the meat can be poor.

I really believe that the majority can source excellent meat off a farm. There are numerous sellers advertising on main roads. Good farms will take you on a tour so you can see the welfare.

Unfortunately distance to slaughter yards are a problem and finding good ones is another thing. Ensors in Forest of Dean have RSPCA and organic standards.

Still the quality of meat from the supermarkt is pretty poor even Waitrose. Another thing there is a difference between dry aged and matured, most supermarkets age their beef in bags (wet). You do pay a premuim for good beef from a butchers. Supermarket beef in cut in massive factories and sometimes lazer cut in huge machines partly frozen at the time to aid cutting (Tescos do this). A truely qualified butcher with a shop on the high street has overheads and prob pays his staff a good above lowest against supermarkets.

IMO it is better to eat less meat but buy the best. The cliche that you get what you pay for is so true. We live in france most of the time and we've found the very best meat (even here it takes looking for!)

MoonFaceMama has a point - decide what your priorities are and go for it...

I'm a SAHM and really should start shopping more locally - so am going to try avoiding the ubiquitous Tesco branches we have around here. I have to drive to them anyway, so why not just drive to town and use the butchers and grocers instead?!

Mel planning is another good tip - sit down and work out (roughly) what you are going to have for supper for the next week and shop to that list, otherwise you end up buying things you don't use... probably preaching to the converted here though!