5 step guide to a greener Christmas - Step 5 - Entertainment

It seems traditional at Christmas to flop down in front of the Television after dinner, the Children might go and play on their Wii or Playstation and our electricity meters start spinning at an alarming rate. 

One of the best Christmases I can remember we suffered a power cut and were forced to resort to more traditional entertainment. We spent the evening playing 'Trivial Pursuit' by candle light. This year Cranium, Connect 4 and Kerplunk are on the cards. If it isn't already a tradition of your family to take a walk after dinner, why not try it? It's a beautiful winters day here in Athy and I for one intend to take a stroll by the river this afternoon. So, today on Christmas day, why not make a resolution to switch it all off for a couple of hours and spend some quality time as a family, you are not only saving electricity and the environment but it gives you a chance to really bond with those closest too you.

Have a great Christmas everyone and I'll see you back here in the new year.

Christmas Carols for Charity

If your ears can bear it, you can listen to my version of 'Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree' for a small donation to the Children’s Medical Research Foundation - Crumlin Children’s Hospital  at: Mumcentic.

5 step guide to a greener Christmas - Step 4 - Presents

This years must have gift, the Nintendo Wii, is flying off the shelves, but what are it's green credentials? According to Green Peace, who have recently launched a new website: Clash of the Consoles, games consoles "contain toxic chemicals and can contribute to the massive growth of electronic waste that's often dumped, causing widespread environmental pollution and health problems for unprotected workers." So I guess to be green we should look else where.

If you live in the Kildare area, there is still a chance to buy one of my organic gift hampers, you can collect or buy at the Naas Farmers Market on Christmas Eve.  For other green gift ideas, you could visit the Eco-shop in glen of the downs which is open until 5pm on Christmas Eve, or the Cultivate centre in Dublin city centre, which although closed on Christmas Eve is open on Sunday the 23rd of December 2007 from 12-5.30pm. 

Online, but sadly too late for this Christmas, have a look at  Nigel's Eco Store. I sent the link out to all my friends in the hope that they would get me something from there. Be warned you could spend the best part of a day browsing through all the great products on offer on his site.

Another lovely idea, is the gift of a tree. Either delivered to your door, sent as a gift certificate so that the recipient can choose their own, or planted on your behalf   this is the ultimate environmental gift. 

For gift wrapping Klee paper do a good range of recycled wrapping paper and cards. For a list of retailers stocking their products check their website. And remember to recycle and reuse your gift wrap.

5 step guide to a greener Christmas - Step 3 - Dinner

Eating has become the thing that I look forward to the most on Christmas Day. But in the midst of all the gluttony it is possible to be a bit greener. 

Firstly, try not to buy too much food. I know myself that it is a hard to resist the mountains of food in the supermarkets at this time of year, but wasted food is a disaster for the environment. The population of the UK throw away about a third of the food they buy, I haven't been able to find a statistic for Ireland but I would imagine that it would be quite similar. The problem is that a lot of our food waste ends up in landfill and produces methane as it decays. As we are now all aware thanks to the belching cow phenomenon, methane is a powerful greenhouse gas. The more worrying and less obvious consequence, according to WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) Is the "embedded energy used to produce, package, transport and deliver the food to our homes which produces the equivalent of at least 15 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year." 

If you are a meat eater I am sure that turkey and ham is a must. Try and source organic meat if possible, if you can't source organic try and buy locally to cut down on the food miles. 

For vegetarians, again try and source local and organic produce. A lot of the ingredients for my own veggie feast can be found at Farmers Markets and health food stores. By shopping here as well as having the best variety of organic and local foods you can also avoid all the packaging that often comes with supermarket vegatables.

If you have a garden it's worth investing in a good compost bin so that you can compost your peelings to help your garden grow in the new year.

5 step guide to a greener Christmas - Step 2 - The Tree

The scent of the pine tree, to me is the smell of Christmas. But are Christmas Trees eco friendly? The good news is that it can be. Christmas trees are farmed and replanted every year so even if you get a cut tree you can rest assured that you are not depriving the earth of a CO2 absorbing tree. Try to buy locally in order to cut down on the amount of fuel consumed getting it to your house. If you buy one in a pot with a view to replanting it at the seasons end, be aware that our warm houses are not neccesarily the best environment for keeping them in, to help it survive make sure you give it plenty of water. The most important thing is to remember to recycle it after Christmas. There are lots of council run recycling stations which will take in your christmas tree, mulch it and use it to help new things grow.

So what about artificial trees? Unfortunately, although as they are reusable artificial trees consume massive amounts of energy during manufacture. This means that they create CO2 during production where as a real tree absorbs it. They are also made from PVC which is derived from oil. If you have one already, don't throw it away, it would be a shame to think that all that CO2 would have been wasted. They make great second trees. 

Although an Irish grown living tree is the more environmentally friendly of your choices do be aware that trees are often sprayed with chemicals and as yet I have been unable to find an organic tree here.

For more information, I found this great article on the Christmas Tree Debate.

5 step guide to a greener Christmas - Step 1 - Christmas Decorations

It’s easy to put aside your good habits when it comes to Christmas but being green can be fun too.
Organic Yum Yum has compiled an easy step by step guide on how to have an eco friendly Christmas

Making your own Christmas Decorations is a great way to bond as a family. Try painting patterns on used paper, cut it into strips and make paper chains with them. They are a great alternative to tinsel. If you are a bit more adventurous you can be more creative with your paper chains, try these ones. Pine trees shed their cones throughout the year and if you live near a wood with lots of evergreens you should have no problem collecting them. They make great Christmas Tree Decorations, or if you are creative you can add them to some fresh cut holly or other garden foliage to make a Christmas Wreath.

You can even bake your own Christmas Tree decorations. Subscribe to Feelgood Organic Hampers recipe of the month service for free by emailing recipe@feelgoodhampers.com and you will get a recipe for shortbread Christmas shapes just in time for the big day. There are plenty of LED, low voltage fairy lights available at the moment which will help cut down on the amount of power you use, try to remember to switch them off when you go to bed.

Famous at Last

Just thought I'd let you all know about some press coverage we have had recently.

The Sunday Business Post

The Kildare Nationalist (scroll down to the bottom of the page)

And Liz Fuller, who has an excellent blog "More Than We Know" has written a profile on me. 

Recipe - Amanda's Perfect Porridge

No one could have failed to have noticed the sudden drop in temperature in Ireland at the moment. I now have a grand total of three hot water bottles in my bed to keep me warm at night. In the morning there is nothing like a good bowl of porridge to help me warm up. I sell Jumbo oats from Rossinver and they have been flying off my stall at the Naas Market. My personal preference is for oatflakes, which make a lovely creamy porridge. I get mine from the health food shop and Flahavans do a lovely organic one that you can pick up in most supermarkets.

For all you porridge novices here is my fail safe quick microwave porridge recipe.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1/2 a cup of porridge flakes or oats

1/2 a cup of milk

1/2 a cup of water

1 tbsp honey

A sprinkling of toasted mixed seeds (optional)

Method:

Pour the oats into a microwavable bowl with the milk and water.

Stir

Put in the microwave at full power for 2 1/2 minutes

Stir in the honey and seeds(if required)

Serve and enjoy

GM Free Petition

On November 28th 2007 the European Commission is making a decision about weather to allow two new strains of GM maize to be cultivated in Europe. These new strains could, amongst other things, have a hideous effect on our wildlife.

To find out more check out GM free Ireland's website. To add your signature to the petition follow this link.

Why Organic Skincare

I have been using and selling organic skin care products for well over a year, but whereas people are beginning to understand the reasons for eating organic food, the benefits of using organic cosmetics are probably not so well know. Although there are strict regulations in place for the labeling of foods as organic these do not apply to skin care products. This can be quite confusing for the consumer, how can you be sure that the bottle of moisturiser on the shop shelf does not contain harmful chemicals?

It is widely believed that a percentage of what you put on your skin is absorbed into your blood stream and a few years ago there was quite a scare when some chemicals, such as parabens used in preserving skin care products and deodorants, were found to be present in breast tumors. No conclusive evidence has been found to link cancer and these chemicals but the scare alone has driven many to seek non chemical solutions. 

The amount of chemicals present in the everyday creams, gels and soaps that we use is quite alarming. A quick look at the side of a bottle will bamboozle you with long names such as methylchloroisothiazolinone, phthalates, polyethylen glycol which appear alongside more familiar ones such as formaldhyde. Some of these chemicals are harmful by themselves, for example methylchloroisothiazolinone is thought to be linked to gene mutations and nervous system disorders, phthalates to genital abnormalities and infertility and formaldehyde to cancer and respiratory irritation. The real worry is that nobody knows what long term effects these chemicals will have when they are combined. In the past, clinical studies on mice have shown that mixing some pesticides can cause conditions similar to Parkinsons Disease an effect never anticipated when the chemicals were used on their own. 

In order to avoid these chemicals we must choose organic but how do we know which ones really are organic? 

Although it is not a legal requirement, if you want to be sure it really is organic,  look for certification on the packaging. Some certification bodies are stricter than others. I always feel like I can trust the Soil Association and I believe the Australian Certified Organic label has one of the strictest set of rules for certification of skin care. Always look to see what percentage of the ingredients are organic. The soil association will approve a small amount of non organic ingredients to be used in the formulas it certifies but these will always be a very small percentage of the end product.

Some of the best known brands of certified organic skin care are: Essential Care, Spiezia from the UK, Miessence from Australia, Dr Bronner from the States and I'm glad to see a new Irish brand on the market Nadur Organics who are in the process of becoming certified.

Organic Product Review - Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap

Every now and then a little package will arrive for me in the post. Sometimes they come from my suppliers, sometimes from potential suppliers and sometimes they are just things that my friends and family have picked up for me.

Recently I received a package that contained a variety of soaps. I have to admit, I wasn't madly excited when I found a small bottle of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap amongst them. I first encountered these liquid soaps at the Organic Products Show in London earlier this year. I stood there while a salesman tried to describe the special qualities of the soap while spraying my hand over and over with water and soap. I probably had so many substances sprayed on my hand that day that any benefit of the liquid soap was lost on me. For this reason Dr. Bronner sat in my bathroom cabinet until, one day, out of desperation, after unexpectedly running out of showergel, I grabbed the little bottle.

From that moment onwards I was a convert. One of the problems I often encounter with organic skincare products is that they don't produce much foam.  I have been told the reason for this is that a chemical agent is used to create this foam. As certified organic products do not contain chemicals they usually also do not contain foam. Dr Bronner, which is 100% certified organic does foam, the bubbles don't last for long but they are lovely whilst they do. It also doesn't smell of anything, I don't mind this, I often find the cocktail of scents that I pour on myself in the bathroom can be a bit overpowering. Some of the soaps in the Dr. Bronner range are scented. I am currently using their peppermint soap bar, which does have a mild peppermint scent but nothing compared to the other products in my bathroom. For some people this could be a disadvantage but it is easily solved by adding a drop or two of organic scented oil to the bottle.

The thing I love about this product, and the reason I will be stocking up on this for myself is that it makes your skin feel amazing. It doesn't dry it out like other products yet it leaves it remarkably clean. I use an organic moisturiser after showering and it used to be a race to get it on to my skin before it starts to shrivel.  After using Dr. Bronner I can relax before moisturising. 

There are disadvantages to this product, aside from the lack of scent and the quickly fading bubbles this is an American product. That means it has travelled a long way to get here. I am sure that Dr. Bronner is busily off setting it's air miles but it is probably still better to buy an organic product closer to home. Even with this considered I will still be buying this product over and over again. I love it!

Recipe of The Month

It's Organic Week in Ireland this week and Feelgood Organic Hampers is launching it's "Organic Recipe Of The Month" to celebrate it.

If you would like me to send an easy to make recipe, which will help you make the best of seasonal ingredients, once a month to your inbox drop me an email at recipe@feelgoodhampers.com. 

If you have a recipe to contribute I'm giving away goodies to anyone who sends me one that I use.

For more details of what is going on for organic week check out Ollies Blog.

Dublin Food Co-op Official Launch

As part of the celebrations for organic week the Dublin Food Co-0p will be officially launching at it's new premises.

For those of you not familiar with the co-op, it is the original organic food market. It has long been one of the best places in Dublin to shop for organic produce both fresh and dried. I was a member there for many years but have let it lapse since I have moved away from the city. Not only was it a great place to shop, I also enjoyed spending my Friday mornings volunteering with them.

A lot of the work in the co-op is carried out by members who receive a discount on their dried goods for the effort. The full or part time staff that run the coop are some of the nicest people you could met and it was always great to talk to them about recent developments in the organic and green movement. So it is with great pleasure that I see they have finally attained their goal of moving to a bigger and better location.

For those of you able to attend, the new co-op is being officially opened by John Gormley, this Saturday (20th October 2007) at 11am. It is based at 12 Newmarket, Cork Street, Dublin 8. They have a map on their website  for those of you not familiar with the area.

Sadly I won't be able to make it myself, as always I will be manning my stall at the Naas Farmers Market.

European Parliament Vote On Pesticides

I received an email from the Soil Association this week asking for my help on this issue. I am including the full text of the email. I'll be blogging more later this week, I just thought this was an issue well worth drawing your attention to. 

Just a thought but if the EU votes in favour of these restrictions are they admitting that pesticides are bad for our health?

Dear friend

I am writing to ask you urgently to email or write to your MEP about some European legislation on pesticides that the European Parliament will vote on in a plenary session on around 23 October. As with many environmental and food safety issues, crucial decisions affecting all of us are now taken at European level, and pesticide safety is no exception. The European Commission are introducing new, Europe-wide laws on pesticides, and there is a chance that these will actually strengthen protection of the public from dangerous sprays.

The European Parliament's Environment Committee has agreed several key amendments to the proposed law, but these now have to be agreed by the European Parliament, and all MEPs have a vote. The chemical industry and the UK's National Farmers' Union are lobbying hard to have all these changes rejected by the Parliament, while Georgina Downs of UK Pesticides Campaign, who initiated many of these proposals, has been working to have them accepted. I have listed below five of the key amendments that the MEPs will have to agree or reject. If you feel any of these are important, and should be agreed by the European Parliament, please let your MEP know. You can find your MEP's name and contact details at:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/members/public.do?language=en

Many thanks to all of you who asked Gordon Brown 'to Wake Up!' to the benefits of organic food and farming, by feeding him an organic breakfast. It is still not to late to join in if you haven't already done so - we'll be reporting the number of hits to the Prime Minister - open this link to play and email it on to your friends and colleagues:
http://www.soilassociation.org/wakeupgordon

Best wishes,

Emma

Emma Hockridge
Campaigner
The Soil Association
0117 914 2433 / ehockridge@soilassociation.org

Prohibiting pesticide use in and around public areas like people's homes, hospitals, public parks, playgrounds and schools
The Environment Committee voted in favour of an amendment to prohibit pesticide use in and around public areas, including residential areas, parks, public gardens, sports and recreation grounds, school grounds, playgrounds, and in the vicinity of public healthcare facilities (clinics, hospitals, rehabilitation centres, health resorts, hospices), particularly, although not exclusively, to protect sensitive groups, such as, babies, children, pregnant women, embryos and foetuses, the elderly, those with pre-existing medical conditions and who may be taking medication, along with all other vulnerable groups. The amendment also specified that the no-spray zones should be substantial and that in all these areas non-chemical alternatives should be used.

Vulnerable groups to include residents subject to high pesticide exposure over the long term
The Environment Committee voted in favour of an amendment that described vulnerable groups as: “Persons needing specific consideration when assessing the acute and chronic health effects of plant protection products. These include pregnant and nursing women, embryos, and fetuses, infants and children, the elderly, people who are ill and those taking medication, workers and residents subject to high pesticide exposure over the long term.”

Residents to have the right to know what is being sprayed next to where they live
Environment Committee voted in favour of an obligation to inform residents and neighbours about pesticide spraying in their locality, as well as the requirement for farmers and other pesticide users to provide information on the pesticides used directly to residents and neighbours who request access to it.

Call a pesticide a pesticide (not a 'plant protection product'!)
The Environment Committee voted in favour of an amendment to change the entire terminology used throughout the adopted text, including the title, from 'Plant Protection Products' to 'pesticides'. The term 'plant protection products' attempts to put a positive spin on chemicals that are deliberately designed to be toxic. The use of this wording throughout the Commission’s proposal, including the title, was inappropriate as many members of the public will not be familiar with this terminology, and its use could lead to confusion amongst members of the public.

Give priority to ways of growing healthy crops without using pesticides
The Environment Committee also voted in favour of a number of amendments for the prioritization of non-chemical methods of plant protection and pest and crop management. The only real solution to eliminate the adverse impacts of pesticides is to take a preventative approach with the widespread adoption of truly sustainable non-chemical and natural methods of plant protection and pest and crop management (including rotation, physical and mechanical control and natural predator management), as happens in organic systems. This protects not only public health, but animals, wildlife, air, water, soil, food and the wider environment. Reliance on complex chemicals designed to kill plants, insects or other forms of life, cannot be classified as sustainable.

To find your local MEP go to:- http://www.europarl.europa.eu/members/public.do?language=en

If you would like more detailed information on the European proposals you can contact Georgina Downs of UK Pesticides Campaign who has prepared a briefing for MEPs http://www.pesticidescampaign.co.uk/

How do you know it's organic?

One of the most questions that I am most commonly asked is 'how do I know it's really organic?' It's a good question. It is very important to understand what makes a product organic and how we can be assured that the food we are buying, often at a premium price, is really chemical free.

The most important thing to look out for is that a product is certified organic. You should find a certification mark on any product labeled organic. Sometimes they will be obvious, most people are familiar with the Soil Association logo or the Irish Organic Trust logo. I know that bread company Blazing Salads bake a rice paper organic certification symbol onto their bread. Some companies simply list their licence number on the packaging, for example UK-5. As a rule of thumb, if you can't find the certification on the label, assume it is not organic.

For fresh organic items such as loose fruit, veg or meat products which are unlikely to be marked, look to see if the retailer is displaying their certification. If you don't see it ask to see it, a legitimate retailer won't mind.

But what does certification mean? It isn't easy to get certification. There are all sorts of rules that have to be complied with and records that need to be kept. IOFGA's guidelines fill a large lever arch folder and cover everything from growing to storage and distribution. A company looking for organic certification will also have to pass an inspection. It doesn't stop there. Certification bodies will spot check producers and retailers to make sure they continue to comply with regulations. Last year the farmers market where I had my stall was inspected twice by the department of agriculture.

Just last week, Trevor Seargent released details of tighter controls and steeper penalties for those who try and pass off non organic foods as organic. See the full story here. Hopefully this will continue bolster consumer confidence in organic foods.

There are three organic certification bodies in Ireland, check out their websites: IOFGA The Organic Trust and Demeter

New Hampers - (a bit of an ad...)

Feelgood Organic Hampers is proud to present it’s 2007/2008 collection: www.feelgoodhampers.com.

This year we are able to offer you an even larger range of organic goodies. As more of our luxury foods are now produced locally in Ireland, the ‘Bosca Mór Glas’ and ‘An Bosca Beag Glas’ are our first hampers to be stocked entirely with Irish products. Budding masterchefs will also appreciate the handy recipe cards included in many of this year's hampers, providing quick and easy guides to making the best of your organic treats.

As always, we are happy to tailor a gift hamper to your specific needs. Just give us a call or drop us an email and we will create a hamper just for you.

If you would like us to send you a brochure email us at amanda@feelgoodhampers.com. Or give us a call on: 059 863 8999.

Product Review: Yummy Earth Lollipops

A little parcel arrived for me in the post this week. Inside, amongst other things were these lovely lollipops. I got a lemon and a pomegranate flavoured one but there are 7 different flavours in the range.

It took a lot of restraint for me to wait until the photograph had been taken before I lashed into the lemon one. I always think organic sweets are a bit boring. There are plenty out there that just seem to take the fun out of having a treat. These lollipops do not fall into this category. They really deliver on all fronts, they taste great, look great and price wise they don't cost anymore that a conventional lolly. That is they don't cost a lot of lolly!

The one complaint would be that they come off the stick a little quickly and you are left chewing them as if they were boiled sweets.

Of course, these sweets are not 'good for you' but they are a lot less 'bad for you' than other sweets. For example, a quick look at their website will tell you that they are free from: gluten, wheat, egg, casein, dairy and soy, they are made in a nut free factory and they contain; 100% natural colours, no chemical dyes, real fruit extracts & 100% Natural Flavors. A closer look at the ingredients shows that they really mean it when they say they only use 100% Natural flavours and colours:

"Natural Flavors (May contain Watermelon, Pomegranate, Orange Oils, Lemon Oils, Raspberry, Mango), Natural Colors, (may contain Red Cabbage, Purple Carrots)"

I wonder what a purple carrot is? It's great to know there is a product out there that not only caters for children with allergies, is organic but doesn't take the fun out of eating sweets.

These really are a great treat for the child in all of us, as soon as I had chomped my way through the first one I had to order a bucket of them. They should be arriving in a couple of weeks so if you want to try for yourself, come and visit my stall at the Naas Farmers Market any Saturday. Mention the blog and I might even give you one for free!

Recipe: Blackberry Smoothie

This Sunday, while walking by the Grand Canal I found the bramble bushes laden with blackberries. It brought back memories of going 'brambling' with my Granny as a child. We used to go out with carrier bags and fill them. The amount I used to put in my bag only equalled the amount I put in my mouth and I used to arrive home with a smile on my face and purple stained lips.

On Sunday I managed to pick enough to make smoothies with and I thought I would share the recipe with you.

Please note, if you don't have a juicer replace the bag of apples with some good quality apple juice. You can pick up some really good ones at Farmers Markets and specialist food stores.

Ingredients - Serves 2

1 large bag of organic apples juiced
A bowl of freshly picked blackberries
2 Bananas

Method

Wash the blackberries thoroughly
Pour the apple juice into a blender
Break up the bananas into small chunks and add to the apple juice
Add the blackberries and blend in short bursts until smooth.
Strain through a sieve to remove seeds.

If you want it extra cold add a couple of ice cubes before blending.

In The News This Week

I can't let the week slip by without drawing attention to two big news stories about organic food.

I'm a bit late with the first one which is an Irish story. Trevor Sargent, former Green Party leader has left me with very little to complain about since they have been in government. I was delighted to read that he is pushing forward plans to massively increase the amount of land given over to organic production in the next 5 years. If these ambitious targets are met we can look forward to a lot more organic foods of all kinds; on our shelves, in our restaurants and in my hampers!... I am quivering with anticipation.

If you want to avoid pesticide residues in your food and you are living in the UK it seems that, unless go completely organic, you will have to live on a diet of carrots and cucumbers! Scientists working on behalf of the British governments Pesticide Residues Committee found that 70% of the free fruit and veg supplied to schoolchildren contained residues. Although some foods tested contained more that one residue, there were none found in carrots or cucumbers. Slightly less worrying, but still of concern, is that out of 220 organic samples tested 5 were found to contain chemical traces.

Organic Yum-Yum in the Guardian

I just discovered that my post about organic food at the Electric Picnic has made it to the Guardian Unlimited Website.

They do accuse me of ranting, which is probably fair enough, I can be prone to the odd rant!

Congratulations Solaris Herbs

Wandering around the 'Shop' trade show only a few days after the Electric Picnic I was delighted to stumble upon the organic awards. It was great to see the array of Irish produced products on display and even better to see that one of the products that will be featuring in my new hamper range took the top spot. Congratulations to Solaris Herbs for winning with their Organic Earl Grey Tea!

Find out more about the awards here.

Going Organic at The Electric Picnic

I'm posting a bit late this week, probably due to the recovery time I required after a mad and fantastic weekend at the Electric Picnic. For those of you who are not from Ireland or who have been locked in a small room for the last four years, The Electric Picnic is arguably Ireland's best music festival, the 'Glastonbury' of Ireland. Best of all it all happens just a few miles away from my house in Stradbally Co. Laois.

Most people would agree that one of the highlights of attending a festival of this kind is the food. As I wandered through the fields full of food stalls selling everything from chips and burgers to smoothies, paella and sushi I was surprised to find so much organic fare on offer. There was a little cafe near 'The Next Stage' that sold nothing but organic, vegetarian dinners of all descriptions. There was organic falafel, organic coffee and at least three tea shops offering organic blends. The farmers market area had a local organic fruit and veg stall and there was even a chance to enjoy an organic tipple at the stand belonging to Irish organic wine distributor Wilhelm Wines. One morning I found a crowd of people around a bunch of cool boxes, I was delighted to find that they were all full of organic Glenisk yogurts that were being given out for free!

With such a variety of foods and drink on offer at reasonable prices and with crowds of people ready to enjoy it I found myself wondering why prepared organic food is not more readily available throughout Ireland. There is the odd place popping up that offers some organic goodies but nowhere with the variety that was available at the Electric Picnic.

The most obvious reason would be the lack of supply of raw organic ingredients. There simply are not enough Irish grown organic vegetables or meats to ensure a constant supply of meals. Shipping organic foods from overseas has become a contentious issue and even if you only shipped from the UK by sea, ensuring minimum environmental impact, there is still not necessarily enough raw ingredients there to meet our combined needs.

So what is the solution? I guess we need to persuade more farmers to go organic. Although the amount of land here given over to organic farming is increasing, it is at a painfully slow rate. Farmers need to know that there is a market for organic produce. Large companies like Glenisk have been proactive in encouraging farmers to convert to organic milk production for them. But small manufacturers do not have the buying power to do this and to some extent this means we are stuck in a catch 22 situation.

Well done to the Electric Picnic for giving us a three day taste of organic utopia! Hopefully it will inspire some of us to fight for a more organic Ireland.

Organic Product Review: Bath Ales - Organic Wild Hare

As a British native, I spent a number of years in my early 20's learning to love real ale. As part of a small group of friends I used to search out small 'Free House' pubs and large beer festivals in search of new ales to taste.

My love of real ale has never subsided and I always look forward to trying some new brews when I am in the UK. My last trip resulted in me bringing home at least 20 bottles, two of which were organic. The first to be tasted was 'Wild Hare' which I bought in the town where it is brewed; Bath.

When I opened the bottle it smelled really good and my first sip revealed a good full hoppy flavour. Much to my disappointment the hoppyness was replaced by an extremely bitter aftertaste which became almost unbearable by the end of the bottle.

I'd like to give this beer the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it's better enjoyed with a good pie than by itself, or maybe it needed to breath a bit longer, or maybe it's just not to my taste. I just hope that there are better organic ales out there for me to taste. I have a bottle of Sam Smith's Organic sitting in the cupboard which I am pinning my hopes on!

Wild Hare is certified organic by the Soil Association

Why are organic dried apricots brown?

Dried apricots are one of my favourite dried fruits. I like to eat them straight from the bag, sprinkle them on my muesli or porridge and bake with them. They work particularly well in the fruity flapjack recipe below. But have you ever wondered why organic dried apricots you find in health food shops are brown instead of orange?

If you look closely at the label on your non-organic apricots you will find SO2 listed as an ingredient . This refers to sulphur dioxide which is used to help the fruit retain it's colour. This process is banned in organic production. The lack of this additive is what gives organic dried apricots it's brown colour and caramel taste. Give them a try they are yummy!

Recipe: Fruity Flapjacks

I have recently started stocking Rossinver Organic Porridge Oats and have found they work really well in this recipe. I also stock the vanilla sugar, if you can't get your hands on any you can always use a tea spoon of vanilla essence in it's place.

Ingredients:
2tbsp Vanilla Sugar
140g Organic Porridge Oats
140g Chopped dried fruit of your choice
85g Butter
2tbsp Golden Syrup

Pre-heat the oven to 180c/Gas Mark 4.
Melt the butter, vanilla sugar and syrup in a saucepan.
Remove from the heat,tir in the porridge oats and fruit and mix well.
Spread evenly into an 18cm square, greased cake tin and press down until firm.
Bake for 25 minutes.
After cooling for approximately 15 minutes slice into rectangles, I made about 8.
Do not remove from the tin until completely cool.

Organic Product Review: Two By Two - Organic Vanilla Biscuits

I bought these biscuits when I was in Whole Foods Market in London. I was attracted by the packaging and was interested because they were an organic luxury biscuit aimed at Children. Inside the rustic cardboard packaging these handmade biscuits are well sealed in a foil packaging. Although hard to open the packaging has preserved the biscuits so perfectly that they make an audible 'snap' when broken. This may suggest that they would be hard, brittle biscuits but being an all butter biscuit they melt in the mouth. The vanilla is not overpowering but subtle and adds a softness to the flavour.

The biscuits themselves are shaped like owls and pussycats and carved with feathers and fur patterns. Children will love these both for the way they look and the way they taste. As a children's product they are quite high in sugar (20.2g per 100g) and saturated fat (14.9g per 100g). On the positive side they contain no hydrogenated or trans fats.

I really enjoyed these biscuits and will definitely be trying to stock these in my new hamper range.

Two by Two Organic Vanilla Biscuits are made by Artisan Biscuits and are certified organic by the soil association.

Travels In Britain Part: 3. Whole Foods Market

I was really looking forward to visiting Whole Foods Market. The store, which opened recently on Kensington High Street London, is the first of the American chain to trade on British soil. Over the last few years I have read a lot about Whole Foods, which is best described as a massive health, local, speciality and organic foods supermarket, and have been intrigued by it's combination of good foods on a large corporate scale.

As I stepped in the door there was, luckily, a leaflet telling me 'How To Shop The Store'. I say luckily because as I looked around me I was surrounded by masses and masses of food. There were towers of beautiful bread, piles of fruit and veg, a serve your self deli counter as long as a double decker bus and a cheese room that, enclosed in glass as it was, was the size of a small Dublin bar. There were isles and isles of grocery products and I was delighted to find some organic products that I hadn't encountered before on the shelves (I will review these at a later date). Without the guide I may never have found my way out!

Upstairs there is a food hall. I was really looking forward to eating here. I once stumbled on one of these food halls in New York in the middle of the night and have always regretted not dining there. Unfortunately my expectations of fine food were not met. After having a quick look around the options seemed to be very limited. Organic pizza by the slice seemed to be the only option that even slightly appealed to my taste buds and as it was rather confusingly priced by weight rather than slice I decided to give it a miss.

My general impression of the store was good. I found the staff friendly and no one could fault the range of products. There were handy information leaflets and recipe cards everywhere, all printed on recycled paper.

On the downside, I was disappointed that there were not more organic foods available. Not all of the fruit and veg was organic and where it was, I would have liked it to have been easier to identify, maybe by some in house labeling system. The same could be said for the local produce. Another concern was the sheer amount of fresh foods. Surely this must lead to a great deal of waste? Finally what sort of impact does a store like this have on the small local organic and health food businesses?

Although I enjoyed the shopping experience I don't think I would have the budget to shop here on a regular basis. It also takes the fun out of finding things in tiny speciality shops, which is one of the pleasures of touring the UK.

If you read enough about Whole Foods Market you will find that it was born from good ideals. It is refreshing to find a company that has always been committed to the principals that so many are now adopting due to customer demand. There is even a Whole Foods Foundation whose mission, in it's own words;

'... is to create economic partnerships with the poor in those developing-world communities that supply our stores with product. Through innovative assistance for entrepreneurship (helping people help themselves), we seek to unleash the energy and creativity of everyone in order to foster wealth and prosperity in emerging economies.'

It is hard to find fault in a company that seems to be doing almost everything right. There is a part of me that is conditioned to believe that because they are a large American chain there must be something wrong with them, but to be honest aside from the comments above I couldn't tell you what it was.

Travels In Britain Part: 2.

I’m home, and it feels great. I’ve never been one of those people who would go on a relaxing holiday and our whistle stop tour of the UK, although great fun, was far from relaxing. We were very lucky with the weather missing all the floods and enjoying the sun for virtually the whole two weeks.

Although it’s great to be back, I can’t help being envious of the popularity of Organics within the UK. Almost every town I went to had a small shop or deli selling great local organic food and drink. There is such a wealth of locally produced organic foods both fresh and pre-packed to choose from in Britain and such an awareness of the organic way that there is plenty of business to keep these shops going. Brighton had by far the best for choice, with several organic café’s and even a supermarket sized health store, there is nothing that you can’t get an organic version of.

The other thing that I noticed was, that even since my last grand tour of the country two years ago, the amount of renewable energy being generated has grown at a terrific rate. There seem to be Turbines everywhere and they appear in the most remote spots. Out to sea and in the mountains the windmills seem graceful and beautiful. There is a certain amount of opposition towards the installation of them amongst the British people, particularly those living in the countryside. I suppose it must be hard for people living in the most unspoiled part of the UK , who never before would have had the threat of a power station being built near them, to accept these huge turbines. At the same time it is great to see Britain taking a step towards sustainable electricity generation.

Travels In Britain Part: 1. Hay-On-Wye

I am writing this sitting outside the Cinema Bookshop in Hay and Wye, ‘Town of Books’, Wales. Despite the early start it feels great to be away. For anyone who hasn’t visited this truly eccentric town on the border of England and Wales, I would encourage you to do so. Host to the annual Hay Literary Festival, there are around 32 bookshops stocking publications on every subject you can imagine.

During my last visit here I found a great little guide to organic wine., and today I have picked up a fantastic book ‘An Agricultural Testament’ by Sir Albert Howard. It was first published in 1940 and is probably the earliest publication relating to organic agriculture I have come across. I’ve just finished the introduction, It paints an idyllic picture of the way that Mother Nature has created the perfect agricultural environment. Where plants and creatures of all species can live together, each contributing to the system, creating no waste, giving back what they have taken as they die and become one with the soil. It then takes us through ancient farming methods, describing in detail the tiered fields of the Inca’s, the fall of the Roman small holding system and the continuing agricultural practices of the Orient. I can’t wait to read the rest.

I have also managed to pick up one or two organic foods for tasting including a local Welsh jam. I will review anything I pick up on this trip over the next few months.

Supermarkets, Prince Charles and Food Miles

It seems Prince Charles’s carrots aren’t pretty enough for the supermarket. British supermarket chain Sainsbury have stopped stocking organic produce from his farm. Another producer to fall victim to the supermarket chains cull is Patrick Holden, the head of the soil association. Read more here. It seems that the major problem with the produce was one caused by food miles.

I think it is fantastic that organic produce is readily available in our supermarkets and on an island the size of Ireland any food grown here can be considered local, this means that food miles within our country are kept to a minimum. And let's not forget that Ireland had a tradition of buying locally even before it became trendy.

Unfortunately this isn't the case in the UK. A couple of years ago I visited an organic farm shop near Perth in Scotland. As I arrived the farmer (and shopkeeper) was coming in from the fields with a basket of freshly picked parsnips. I was delighted to be able to buy such fresh organic produce. We talked a bit about our joint love of everything organic. I was in the midst of setting up my hamper company at the time and soon our conversation turned to my frustration at not being able to source Irish organic gourmet foods. I told her that I felt that stocking local products would be very important to my customers. The farmer was envious of the Irish loyalty to local produce. She hoped that people in Scotland would soon become more aware that buying local and organic was important not only for environmental and health reasons, but also for the economy. Two years on I hope her dream is coming true. Food miles seem to be talked about everywhere now. They were even the topic for a row between Ken and Deirdrie on Coronation Street recently. Thanks to television programmes like 'River Cottage' and 'The F Word' the popularity of local food seems to be growing.

So what was the problem with Charlies local carrots? Well apparently he shared the same issues as Patrick Holdon who explained his story on BBC Radio Five Live. Apparently Mr. Holdon's carrots were being sent by truck from his farm in Wales to a packing plant in Peterborough. Once wrapped, they were then delivered back to eight Sainsbury's stores local to his farm via a depot in Bristol. All the handling, washing, polishing and packing meant that the produce was arriving at the store battered and, according to Sainsbury's, sub standard.

I am sure this rejection by a major supermarket is a blow to the farms in question, but think about which carrot you would prefer to eat. One that since it had been picked had travelled the length and breadth of the country over a period of a few days, or one that has been plucked from the ground by a local organic farmer in the last 24 hours?

Product Review: Glenisk Raspberry Yoghurt

Glenisk the Irish organic dairy have recently re-branded. I have long been a fan of their organic milk. The full fat version, which until now has been the only cows milk available, is gorgeous. I don't usually use full fat milk but this one is sooo yummy that I just have to treat myself now and then. I started using the yogurts a little while ago and although they were tasty enough I was always disappointed that they didn't have any chunks. Part of the pleasue of a yogurt is to bite into the fruity chunks, it's the best bit just like the orange centre a Jaffa Cake.

At first sight the new packaging doesn't really do it for me. I liked the old fashioned style graphics that used to adorn the milk cartons. One bonus however is that the milk now comes in a regular 1 litre size, the smaller 750ml cartons used to run out way too quickly. Another improvement is the new low fat version, this means I can use it all the time.

I buy the single portion sized yogurts to bring to work with me, that only flavours available at my local supermarket were natural and raspberry. So I bought the raspberry. At 11am I sat down for my tea break and peeled back the lid. To my delight the new improved Glenisk yogurt now included chunks! The yogurt itself remains the lovely creamy satisfying flavour that it always was and although raspberry isn't really the best flavour to judge chunks on, it was great to have them there. I can't wait to taste the other flavours.

It is also worth mentioning that the yogurt is described on the packaging as low fat. I often find that low fat yogurts contain gelatine and as a vegetarian this is a big no no. I was pleased to find that the Glenisk yogurt was marked as suitable for vegetarians and was completely gelatine free.

Glenisk products are available in health food shops and supermarkets country wide. Their products are certified organic by IOFGA

What A Nice Man

I subscribe to the British magazine: Natural and Organic Products. It is an industry publication and usually just a little bit boring. This month however I was delighted to find this article by regular columist Craig Sams.

It's not often you will find somone so positive about Ireland. Maybe it takes a visitor to appreciate what we really have.

Recipe: Organic Blueberry Muffins

With the wide variety of organic ingredients now available in our health food stores and supermarkets it is now quite easy to bake your own organic goodies.

I made these yummy muffins this evening and we have polished off quite a few already! I stock the organic vanilla sugar and found it a good alternative to the muscavado sugar that I usually use. The only ingredient that I couldn't find an organic version of was the baking powder.

Ingredients:
350g plain white flour
1 tbsp baking powder
175g Vanilla Sugar
50g Softened butter
3 Large Eggs
150ml milk
I carton of blueberries

Preheat the oven to 200c/400f/Gas Mark 6. Line a muffin tray with 12 muffin cases.

Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl, mix in the vanilla sugar. Whisk in the butter eggs and milk until the mixture is smooth.

Stir in the blueberries.

Spoon the mixture into the muffin cases and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Bertie, The Greens and GMO

It seems to be big news all over the Irish sites. Some of my favourites are reporting it yet it refers to just a small section of the Green Parties programme for government. I for one am going to watch progress closely.

Fianna Fail have agreed that in partnership with the Green Party they will work to keep Ireland a GM (genetically modified) free zone. I am cautiously enthusiastic and will keep you posted on any developments.

I am in the middle of a document outlining the main concerns with GM food but in the mean time you will find plenty of information on GM Free Ireland.

For information on the programme for government have a look at the Green Party website. And for the press release in full check here.

Product Review: Meridian Organic Tomato & Chilli Pasta Sauce

To be completely honest, I love this sauce so much, and eat it at such a speed that I find it almost impossible to describe.

Spaghetti Bolognese has always been a firm favourite of mine and over the years I have tried many pre-prepared sauces as well as making a few of my own. This sauce, in my opinion is the best of the pre-prepared sauces. I always like to have a jar sitting in the cupboard for that emergency pasta urge.

I like a bit of spice in my food and this sauce provides it in bucket loads. The heat of the sauce is well balanced with the tomatoes and a good dose of herbs. Don't worry if spice isn't your thing, there are a variety of flavours available including tomato and herb, tomato with mushroom and tomato with Spanish olives. It is worth noting that although I use this sauce for my Bolognese it is intended to be heated through and served on it's own with pasta.

The one downside for me is that as it contains no added sugar it can seem a little bitter. I always add a teaspoon or so of organic sugar to counteract this.

It can be found in most good health food stores and is certified organic by the Soil Association.

Why Organic Cotton?

Organic cotton seems to be really hot this year. I sell organic cotton baby clothes both in my hampers and at my market stall in Stillorgan, Dublin. I have been stocking them for just over a year, and they have always been a big seller . The trend seems to be spreading. One of the local shopkeepers in the Stillorgan shopping centre was telling me that they were particularly pleased with their new organic cotton range. It had only been on the rails for just over a week but were already selling really well. If you are in Stillorgan on a Wednesday pop by my stall and I will point you in the direction of her shop.

I am often asked how cotton can be organic. I think we often forget that our clothes come from plants too. In fact, according to The Guardian's Green Living Guide: "More than 10% of all agricultural pesticides are used to grow cotton, even though it makes up less than 3% of the worlds crops" Also most of these crops are grown in developing countries where the environmental impact and damage to human health that these chemicals cause is most damaging. Imagine a country with very little water, then imagine polluting that water source. The best source of information on organic cotton that I have found is PAN UK

The advantage for us? The baby clothes I sell are noticeably softer than the non-organic alternative, they are gentle next to the babies skin, and in my opinion less likely to flare up any allergies that a child may have. For the adult it's the same. There are great brands of organic socks and underwear out there. As for organic cotton fashion items, you can feel good about wearing them as well as looking great.

So where can you buy organic cotton? In Ireland of course you can buy from me. Also try Unicorn Designs or Oxfam and I know there are a lot more that you can get mail order from the UK.

Another reason to eat Organic

With all the recent hype about global warming it seems that one of the largest contributors is being ignored. No I am not talking about Methane from farting and belching cows.

Nitrogen which is used to create chemical fertilsers, pesticides and animal feeds has a 300 times greater effect on the global warming epidemic than Co2.

Of course organic crops are grown without the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides so choosing the organic option is not contributing to global warning in this way.

Find out more about nitrogen here.

Organic Yum-Yum

I love organic food and I want you all to love it as well.

I'm hoping that this blog will help you find out why organic food is better, which organic foods taste best, and where to buy it.
I will do my best to find the answers to all the common questions about organic stuff.

Throw in the odd rant about whatever happens to be bothering me at the time and you've got Organic Yum-Yum. So here goes...