It's the supermarkets to blame

I know it's been said before, earlier on farming on the radio a farmer from Churchstoke was saying how he had to double his flock to be in same place he also said the supermarkets are to blame as they want cheap food and they don't care how they get it
 

bluebell

Member
Look supermarkets dont force people to buy their food, they compete in a very compettitive market place? I dont like how the countrys gone and farming with that?, but how could it ever go back to the days of small farms, small growers, many supplying wholesale markets, where greengroucers and the like used to buy? The population growth for one has changed all that?
 
The supermarkets have certainly taken a bigger share of the final retail price over recent years and farmers have borne the brunt. Although to be fair, the processors are squeezed in various ways by them as well. The hoops they are required to jump through become ever more complex.
 

HolzKopf

Member
Location
Kent&Snuffit
A good percentage of the people that want to change their ways find themselves intimidated when they go into an independent butchers, greengrocers or wet fish shop. Frankly, many don't know what to ask for save a leg of lamb, a chicken or a pair of kippers! Anything else might embarrass them. In a supermarket they can look and choose without pressure. Our local butchers (now a vet :unsure:) used to tell me that quite a few people would peer in and if asked 'can we help' would say 'no, it's ok' and scurry off

Along with much else, we've lost food education and so many can't be bothered or don't want to learn

HK
 

Grass And Grain

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Yorks
A good percentage of the people that want to change their ways find themselves intimidated when they go into an independent butchers, greengrocers or wet fish shop. Frankly, many don't know what to ask for save a leg of lamb, a chicken or a pair of kippers! Anything else might embarrass them. In a supermarket they can look and choose without pressure. Our local butchers (now a vet :unsure:) used to tell me that quite a few people would peer in and if asked 'can we help' would say 'no, it's ok' and scurry off

Along with much else, we've lost food education and so many can't be bothered or don't want to learn

HK
I sort of agree. Get to front of queue in butchers shop and you need to have decided what you want. More time to browse the supermarket prepack shelves.

Some shoppers might go in knowing what meals they've got planned, but imagine many browse, then buy whatever has taken their fancy.
 

Shann_mann

Member
I think it’s the education of people towards meat and products that is to blame. To many people think you only get steak off a cow and they don’t know what to do with a big joint of rib or a few lb of stew steak. The supermarket is the easy option walk grab a 15 minute gas mark 6 Cottage pie bag of 12 minutes chips and tea is sorted. They don’t want the hassle of making from scratch. It’s the times we live in that are to blame not fully supermarkets.
 

twizzel

Member
I think it’s the education of people towards meat and products that is to blame. To many people think you only get steak off a cow and they don’t know what to do with a big joint of rib or a few lb of stew steak. The supermarket is the easy option walk grab a 15 minute gas mark 6 Cottage pie bag of 12 minutes chips and tea is sorted. They don’t want the hassle of making from scratch. It’s the times we live in that are to blame not fully supermarkets.
This is sadly true. I’m mid 30s and enjoy cooking, though been living off microwave meals for the last month due to kitchen renovations. Yes they are easy, 3 mins and you’ve got dinner. I can see why people won’t cook. But I can’t wait to get my kitchen back and cook dinner every evening, and eat it at a table. I think one of the first meals we will have is roast lamb 😋
 

Muddyroads

Member
NFFN Member
Location
Exeter, Devon
Somebody once said that market share is the route of all evil. Trouble is nobody seems to know how to change it. The odd thing is that if a farmer is heard to have made a profit he’s described as being greedy, yet a supermarket can make £2.2 Billion in the second half of a pandemic and nobody bats an eyelid.
It concerns me that with a recession on the way the one thing that will be clamoured for above all else will be cheaper food.
 

Flatlander

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lorette Manitoba
Farmers tend to eat different to the general public I think. I for one grew up with meat potatoes and a couple of veggies covered with gravy. Fish was once a week. Mum cooked good food and nothing was wasted. Pasta was unheard of unless it came from a can. Rice was a pudding. So many of the younger generation gave no idea of cooking a dinner like that and probably not even want it. Got given a smoked brisket from a friend at the Hutterite colony a while back,best tenderest meat I’ve had in a long time. Wife loved it until she knew what it was. times hav changed so much.
 
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Gedd

Member
Livestock Farmer
This is sadly true. I’m mid 30s and enjoy cooking, though been living off microwave meals for the last month due to kitchen renovations. Yes they are easy, 3 mins and you’ve got dinner. I can see why people won’t cook. But I can’t wait to get my kitchen back and cook dinner every evening, and eat it at a table. I think one of the first meals we will have is roast lamb 😋
And i bet you cant wait for home cooked again that ready meal stuff is pretty tasteless to me wife leaves a few if she goes away for a few days
 

twizzel

Member
And i bet you cant wait for home cooked again that ready meal stuff is pretty tasteless to me wife leaves a few if she goes away for a few days
Some of them have been ok, but most of them just blend into mush, and the portion sizes are very small. Needs must, but I’m counting down the days now… kitchen fitter comes in 1 week!
 

Paddington

Member
Location
Soggy Shropshire
I applied for a part time job in Tesco's many years ago and the manager showed me around. It was in a pretty rough area near an army base with a lot of the clientele being large, unkempt with loads of tattoos and they were just the women.. A little old lady stopped the manager and asked if they had Yorkshire pudding mix ? The manager said they had run out, lots of people had been asking for it, try next week. She was doing a sunday roast next day and was upset they couldn't have Yorkshire puddings. I gave her a recipe, flour,water, milk and an egg. She looked wary, I said I could write it down for her. I think if I had said that Aldi's had it in stock, I would have got the same look from the manager. I never did stack the shelves there.
 

Ffermer Bach

Member
Livestock Farmer
I think it’s the education of people towards meat and products that is to blame. To many people think you only get steak off a cow and they don’t know what to do with a big joint of rib or a few lb of stew steak. The supermarket is the easy option walk grab a 15 minute gas mark 6 Cottage pie bag of 12 minutes chips and tea is sorted. They don’t want the hassle of making from scratch. It’s the times we live in that are to blame not fully supermarkets.
I don't know what type of food culture we have had in the UK in the past, however, I think we seem to have lost most of it now, which is now playing out in the obesity epidemic (and the accompanying health problems like metabolic syndrome etc). It come to something when you can even buy veggies that are pre cut up etc (or for that matter pre boiled eggs!).

Having said that, when I make a Lasagne, I buy a jar of white sauce (bit of a faff to make a roux sauce, however if I am cooking a fisherman's pie I will make a cheese sauce from scratch).
 

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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