Archive for January, 2009

Looking around the cupboards in the house I share with three friends, it seems the current economic crisis is really hitting home. While the shelves are still just as well stocked as ever, where Fairtrade coffee and bananas used to sit, they are now just as likely to be replaced by supermarket own brand equivalents. With the economy in the state it is right now, ethical purchasing decisions may come under a little more pressure and a little more scrutiny than previously, and as people ‘tighten their belts’ at home it is worrying that fair trade products may be seen as a luxury, and another thing to be cut in the never-ending struggle to save a few pennies.

With Fairtrade Fortnight on the horizon, it felt like a good time to reflect on what fair trade actually means to people.  Depending on your perspective, those two little words, and what they stand for, can have very different meanings. From our perspective, as consumers, it could mean ensuring that our money is spent on products which directly benefit the people responsible for growing or manufacturing them. To the manufacturers, and anyone else on the front line of the fair trade movement, it can mean a lifeline.

I feel it’s worth remembering when considering your fair trade buying habits, that to the producers ‘tightening your belt’ is much more than just a handy turn of phrase, and that our ‘harsh economic outlook’ would be labelled as ‘unadulterated luxury’ by the three billion people currently living on less than $2.50 a day. I know that sounds like the stressed mother lecturing her fussy child on the virtues of eating sprouts, but it’s true. In my opinion, the possible extra expense is outweighed by the benefit to those that need it most, and anyway, in many cases I’m finding that the reputation that fair trade products have for being more expensive doesn’t necessarily carry through, especially with a little bit of crafty shopping. With one quarter of the UK’s shoppers now regularly buying several Fairtrade Labelled products, it seems I’m not the only person to feel this way.

Read the rest of Cupboard love? »

It seems to me that people are largely divided into two groups – the givers and the takers. On walking into a new job, a classroom or a party, there will always be those who are thinking “What can I get out of this?” and those who are thinking “What can I give to this situation?” You probably know which you are. Your friends most certainly do.

I have a suspicion that over the next months, President Obama will be aiming to inspire the givers and challenge the takers. He will be hoping to work out in practice these wise words of John F Kennedy,
“And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

We can of course widen that sentiment out to include us all. Ask not what the world can do for you, ask what you can do for the world. Do we take as much as we want of the world’s energy resources, or do we consider how to conserve energy for future generations? Do we choose the food and drink that we buy purely for our own pleasure, or do we consider the cost to the producer on the other side of the world? Do we use the household products that promise the most or do we consider the harmful effect of what is going down our drains?

Read the rest of Givers and Takers »

EthicalSuperstore.com talks to George Alagiah

With Fairtrade Fortnight less than four weeks away, Ethical Superstore talks to everyone’s favourite newsreader George Alagiah about getting active for Fairtrade; ethics during the credit crunch and his hopes for the future of Fairtrade.

Read the rest of Make it Happen – Choose Fairtrade »

Who ever said there is no such thing as a free lunch had obviously never thought of Soup Club!

If you’ve been keeping up to date with last week’s Soup Challenge here at Ethical Superstore you’ll know that five brave souls took up the challenge of preparing and providing lunch for their colleagues one day a week; thus five mouths were fed and they only had to dip into their pocket once.

Not only was last week great fun, but each lunch time was so much more relaxing and enjoyable simply by taking half an hour away from our desks to sit around a table together and share a warm, hearty, homemade meal.

Conversation was flowing, recipes were passed around, and compliments were bounding forth for each chef and every soup. Perhaps most importantly though, in these tough economic times where your ethical purchasing decisions may be put under a little more pressure than usual, we proved that you can eat, and indeed eat well, both on a budget and whilst upholding your ethics.

All soups fulfilled the criteria of having “Ethical Credentials”, whether this was by including locally produced or seasonal vegetables, organic ingredients, or fair trade fodder in their recipes. As well as this, they all scored highly for taste; proving that ethically produced soup, made on a budget does not have to compromise on flavour. Finally, they were all scored at least 2 out of 3 in terms of value for money.

With the cost for each vat of soup (including a side dish in many cases!) averaging out at less than £4, each participant in the Soup Challenge left Soup Club with a renewed vigour to make their own lunch, share their dinner, and produce ethical food safe in the knowledge that it will not only save them money, but will contribute to a sense of relaxation and community come lunch time.

Just to recap, we started last week with John’s Carrot & Coriander, followed by Elaine and her Moroccan Carrot & Lentil, Wednesday’s soup was provided by Ben who made a Spicy Winter Veg, Twanna brought Organic Pea & Bacon to the table and we closed proceedings with Dan and his Spicy Tomato soup.

So, here’s the bit they’ve all been waiting for, as independent adjudicator I can confirm the final scores:

Read the rest of Ethical SOUPerStore: The Verdict »

I question whether or not my lunches will ever be the same after last week’s cook-a-thon.  For five consecutive work days me and four of my ambitious colleagues set out to cook up a lunch storm.  Starting last Monday and ending Friday our goal was to cook soup for five on a budget using ‘ethical’ ingredients – the winner to be judged on taste, ethics, and value for money.  In a mouthful, it was a yummy success and although the winner has yet to be announced – I couldn’t care less.  The fact that I was served a lovely bowl of soup every day last week, saving me in the region of £15.00 which I normally spend buying food lacking in all things good and healthy, made me a very happy woman indeed.

However the real point of this blog is to highlight my soup, the only green and non-vegetarian soup of the week – Twanna’s Easy-peasy Pea and Smoked Bacon soup. A delicious, hearty soup/meal, ideal for lunch or dinner and it doesn’t break the bank. It’s perfect for those of us on a budget during these credit crunching times.

You could say my soup recipe is a little like that of Innocent Smoothies, nice and simple yet not nearly as expensive (sorry Innocent no harm intended just telling the truth – as I see it).

So here it goes – ideally all ingredients are organic and where possible local and/or Fairtrade:

Read the rest of After a ‘SOUPER’ week will lunchtimes ever be the same? »

Tomato Soup With A Kick!

With the pressure firmly on, it was my turn to step up to the (hot)plate and deliver a bowl of super soup.  Although I fancy myself as a bit of a budding Jamie Oliver in the kitchen, I have only ever made two big pans of soup before; one was the test run for this dish, and the other was the dish itself.

The competition this week has been fierce; John Torode and Gregg Wallace (by the way, what exactly is an ‘ingredient expert’? Isn’t he just a freeloading greengrocer?) would have been salivating like Bloodhounds at the earlier offerings. I couldn’t let the week simply dissipate with an uninspired offering, and the bar had been set extremely high. A touch of the jitters had set in at this point.

So to the soup. I decided to whip up a Spicy Tomato concoction – but with a twist. Now, this isn’t the kind of twist that was popularized in the Christmas special of The Royal Family where Dave and Denise lumped a knob of Stork into mashed carrots, it was a touch more adventurous than that.

First I got the carrots, onions, red peppers and garlic and chopped them finely. I lashed them into a pan of hot olive oil, where they were left to soften.  Next I had to don a pair of gloves used only by employees at Sellafield, as the chills were brought out and finely diced and added to the pot. Seasoning was added at this stage, a pinch of salt & pepper and some organic spices (basil and thyme).

Read the rest of Ethical Soup-er Store Finale! »

Gordon Brown & Queen Rania -WEF Annual Meeting Davos 2008

On the 28th January, Heads of state, business and religious leaders are meeting in the Swiss alpine town of Davos to initiate the start of the five day World Economic Forum (WEF).

The WEF is a Geneva-based non-profit foundation best known for its Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland which brings together top business leaders, international political leaders, selected intellectuals and journalists to discuss the most pressing issues facing the world including health and the environment.

In 2008, some 250 public figures attended the Annual Meeting, including: Ban Ki-moon, Condoleezza Rice, Ferenc Gyurcsany, François Fillon, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Gordon Brown, Hamid Karzai,  Queen Rania of Jordan, Shimon Peres.

Al Gore, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Bono, and Tony Blair are also regular Davos attendees.

Read the rest of Dear Davos »

Spicy Winter Vegetable Soup

So, day three of the EthicalSoup-erStore Soup Challenge, and the task falls to me to prepare the lunchtime broth. Now, I’ve made soup before, but I like soups to be thick and chunky, and I have a feeling that some of my classic family recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation may be slightly too eccentric for some of the palates here…

Read the rest of Ethical Soup-er Store Challenge – Day 3 »

As the second ‘Souper cook’ to take part in this weeks lunch time soup challenge the bar had been well and truly set with John’s carrot and coriander number.  It had set the bar high not only on cost , flavour and ethical values but also on presentation (I noticed John’s post neglected to mention his smart place mat’s and designer salt and pepper mills!)

The pressure was on and I had to deliver a home made soup that was not only flavoursome but different as my main ingredient would also be the humble seasonal orange carrot!

So after much debate I came up with a stock cupboard favourite Carrot and Lentils with a Moroccan twist. A really easy recipe to put together which would also allow me some  extra time to create a couple of homemade naans, to accompany  the dish and maybe score me some extra brownie points…game on.

Read the rest of The Morrocan Twist »

"I had already been obsessing about apples all week."

Last night, my sixteen year old son told me that his girlfriend had said something really nice about me. I anticipated what it might be – perhaps a compliment about my appearance, personality or skills as a domestic goddess?

“You choose good apples.”

Not quite what I was hoping for. So then what was intended as a throwaway comment becomes a topic worthy of the Inquisition – the green ones or the red ones? the colour, the size, the juiciness..?

Coincidentally, I had already been obsessing about apples all week. I have been buying organic fruit for some time now. Last week, however, I noticed that the organic apples were from the USA. Although I am warming to the United States with the new President taking office this week, I stood in the supermarket aisle agonising over my dilemma: surely the good I am doing for the planet in supporting the organic cause is being cancelled out by the environmental damage of flying said apples from the States. I put them back.

Reaching for the fair trade apples, I was perturbed to see that they were produced in South Africa. Still such a long way. I put them back.

I eventually settled on apples from

Read the rest of The Knowledge of Good and Evil »