In a recent edition of the UK’s Independent newspaper CityHippy got a quote and a nod in a great article about How to buy food that doesn’t cost the Earth. I posted the whole piece I gave to the paper’s writer on my own site as obviously the paper could not run the whole piece. I think it is a great summary of the issues surrounding ethical food. Enjoy.

Greening your food habits is not just about how much money you spend. It is far more important to think about your food, to spend some time reconnecting with your food. Where did it come from? Who grew it? How was it grown? Not asking you to hand-pick or visit the field, just spare a moment when making a purchase to consider the impact that the food has had on YOUR world.

How to deal with those CityHippy hunger pangs?
You are in central Anywhere and you need a snack before that interview/concert/whatever. McDonalds? Not bloody likely. Supermarket for a quick sandwich? Hardly green, apart from the lettuce.

There are doable green-ish cheap ethical fast-food options:

OK: Pret, whilst being 1/3 owned by McDonalds, offers a lot of fairtrade, fresh, organic, packaging-reduced options. Plus they treat their staff well. And hey the more money McDonalds make from ethical business the better right?

BETTER: Here in the UK Waitrose or M&S are offering much greener alternatives nowadays. Wherever you are you can bet someone will be offering a greener choice. Find out and support them if you want to see more green choices.

BEST: Find a local ethical non-chain food shop and support them. Hard to find though. Greenest option by far.

Further info: Ethical Fast Food?

To meat or not to meat?
Eating meat is just plain bad for the planet. Forests are cut down so cattle can graze. No matter how humane animals are treated in the end they end up dead on your plate. Around 4 kilos of grain are required to produce 1 kilo of pork, and 8 kilos are needed for a kilo of beef. (Source: American Association for the Advancement of Science). There is just not enough land to produce enough meat if we all wanted it.

Being vegetarian is quite possibly the biggest green thing any of us can do…saying that I know it is hard and it is something I struggle with. However I have certainly cut down my meat intake and look forward to the day when I am meat-free.

UPDATE: I am just watching a new movie and will review soon on CityHippy that has pretty much made me commit to never knowingly using animal products for anything ever again. Watch the site for more on that.

Further info: Meat Koma Karma

Who produces the food we eat and how are they treated? Is your food produced under conditions you would be happy to work under i.e. Fairtrade where growers get fair prices that they can use to plan ahead and grow their communities instead of relying on charity etc.

Or do the Chickens wallow in their own wee?

Further info: Supermarket Secrets and Supermarket Secrets Finale

How is the food produced?
Is the food produced using chemicals or with as little chemical intervention as possible i.e. Organic? Are the animals treated well i.e. free range etc.

The Soil Association can offer you a lot of info here including what organics you can buy and where etc specifically in the UK. For you Canucks out there check out the Canadian Organic Growers and the Organic Trade Association

Where is the food from?
Is it grown on the other side of the world therefore requiring planes, trains and automobiles to transport it (needless foodmiles) and chemical storage systems to keep it faux fresh? Buying locally and seasonally ensures that you eat in harmony with nature whilst supporting people as near to your community as possible.

Further info: Supermarket Secrets and Supermarket Secrets Finale

Taking care of business?
Growing your own is becoming more popular of course and for those without gardens allotments (little private yet public plots) are back in a big way. CityHippy will be growing something for the first time this year - make sure you tune into the site to watch our journey into the world of the humble potato! Find out if such a thing is available near to you. Think creatively. Someone got a garden they do not use? Get them to let you grow something in their garden and offer them a share as a thankyou. Worth a shot!

Packaging Shmackaging!
We drape our groceries in oodles of plastic from the packaging they come in to the bags we take them home in. Most of it is needless. Most of it is so engrained in our every day behaviour even I find myself sometimes accepting plastic bags. We have to retrain ourselves to take reusable bags or not take a bag for small items.

You can reject packaging as much as possible…and don’t forget the customer ends up paying for all the packaging costs one way or another anyway.

Reject shopping bags and buy Jute bags or anything more durable to use. Leave them in your trunk/boot after each shop so they are ready for your next trip. Better yet join an organic vegetable/fruit box delivery scheme and get your fruit and veg delivered fresh plus it tends to be local (ish) and seasonal (ish).

What a waste?
The amount of food we purchase and throw away is borderline criminal. I have heard that this amounts to about 30% of all food we buy here in the UK. Plus Supermarkets only accept the nicest looking produce (apparently we don’t like a bit of mud or the occasional rude looking Turnip?) and they also discard about 30% on appearance alone, again in the UK. Think about farmers making a third more, saving a third off your grocery bills, cutting down a third of all fruit and veg packaging and shaving off a third of all foodmiles and the carbon emissions produced as a result!!!

Further info: Supermarket Secrets and Supermarket Secrets Finale

Food is politics people!

Namaste

Al

This article originally appeared here on CityHippy.net