LOAFing Update #2

Our organic fruit and vegetable box is working out well enough that I'm committing myself to a regular order. We are managing to use everything, though I made a slightly odd looking aubergine dip and forgot to eat it. Nobody liked the smell of the fennel so I smuggled some into a Weight Watchers vegetable rosti recipe. The rosti came out as a heap of smushed grated vegetables, but tasted better than it looked. Angel is already an enthusiast for organic fruit, which she says tastes a lot better than the ordinary kind. This week I bought more, which seemed to be better value than the small bag I bought last week.

The price works out a lot less than buying organic from the supermarket - fifty percent according to my rough calculation for the first box - and only about ten percent more than the equivalent non-organic produce (higher for the fruit, I think, though I didn't check that). I have learned that early June is a bad time for British grown produce. I was surprised that half the contents of the box were imported, but apparently most of the local crops are not ready to start picking until the second half of June. The farm company use their own and their partners produce wherever possible, but during spring they buy in more to fill the boxes and give variety. Nothing is airfreighted, so it doesn't go too far against the L in LOAF (locally produced).

Fair trade? I have added sultanas to my coffee and cookies. A small start, but a start. Organic meat is still largely outside my budget and I haven't yet made a trip to the local butcher - maybe tomorrow? - but I highly recommend Waitrose organic beefburgers.