There's only one good reason to buy a food item and that's because its nice to eat. I'm happy to drink fairtrade tea at home and at work because the Sainsbury's fairtrade Kenya teabags are miles better than PG, Tetley etc.
I haven't encountered Ubuntu Cola and if they do a diet version I might at least give it a go: but my experience from RSPB reserves around the country is that much fairtrade stuff is actually quite horrible, and its worthiness is not a good reason for buying it. Incidentally I heartily dislike Pepsi's cola products: for me its Diet Coke or nothing as a rule. That's where the bar sits.
Instead I will, unless I know decent food is available, load my car up with the stuff I do like, adding weight to its load and thereby burning ever so slightly more fossil fuel to get to the reserve: so the RSPB (or any other conservation organisation) has a real incentive apart from their own profit margin to ensure they only supply products that are worth having - and perhaps compromise a little to make sure of getting the business from their visitors.
Life is too short to waste time and money on magazines like "Ethical Consumer". (It would eat into my BF time!) If its a decent product it will be on shelves and flying off them. If its not I'm not going to buy it anyway.
Time for a mug of Kenya tea.....
John
John
You know as well as I that flavour is crucial when it comes to food but surely it isn’t the only reason to eat something? I’ve had a few Fairtrade/organic drinks and snacks over the years that I wouldn’t buy again as they tasted horrible. But it’s perfectly possible these days to purchase many tasty foodstuffs at a reasonable price while also understanding that the companies behind them support conservation and lift people out of poverty.
I’m far from being ‘Mr Right On’ and have many questionable lifestyle, consumer preferences etc. Life isn’t black and white and many factors influence our shopping habits. But it’s good to buy ethically when you can. Many things are too expensive, uncomfortable, poor quality etc for me to buy. And I would never judge anyone for what they eat or other aspects of their lifestyle! I’d rather share a meal at a dinner party prepared with good intentions and in stimulating company than start whingeing about some of the ingredients. I’ve always enjoyed cuisine from all over the planet and have no intention of stopping. Food is a link to one’s culture, heritage and traditions apart from just nutritional value. And I really do hate preachy food fascists - what’s right for one isn’t necessarily right for everyone else. I always say it’s far more important what comes out of your mouth than what goes in it!
However, having studied agricultural systems and their impact on the environment, met the victims of pesticide poisoning, grown produce organically and had some really scary health issues over the years I’m cynical about the safety of much chemical based agriculture. I also worked in one of the first Fairtrade shops in the U.K. back in the 80’s and have met people from countries producing these goods. I’m aware of the positive effect that the items in our shopping baskets can make and fully endorse products that are good for humans and the environment.
We really don’t realise how lucky we are over here - there are many problems in Wales and the rest of the U.K. but we don’t have to cope with some of the pressure others face daily. So many people worldwide are shit poor because they just happen to have been born in undemocratic countries controlled by exploitative dictators who are only interested in material wealth. As someone discussed recently half of the poachers trashing wildlife in Kenya live in utter poverty and do what they do simply to survive. Ensuring people have a regular income, have enough to eat, have access to water, sanitation and an education for their kids can have a positive impact on the environment as they don’t have to resort to destructive practises out of desperation.
Getting into birding made me realise the profound effects that humans have on global ecology and my part in it. I became interested in wider green issues and this led to an awareness of associated philosophy etc. I believe that conservation organisations should do as much as they can to promote and sell sustainable goods that are beneficial for people and planet. Why run campaigns on climate change in the reserve shops then have shelves full of plastic toys and other crap for kids to blow their pocket money on when there are so many decent alternatives? Plastic toys are fine in moderation (I buy them for small people sometimes) and it’s an invaluable material for some applications, but considering the ecological footprint it seems weird for environmental organisations with massive purchasing power to continue to flog so much of it.
Looking at the wider picture you could argue that the considerable amount of money most of us spend annually on food (and which farming systems we support) has a far greater effect on agricultural landscapes that the small change we spend on subscriptions to RSPB et al.
Always look forward to your contributions on here so wouldn’t want anything to eat into your BF time - but don’t dismiss ‘Ethical Consumer’ if you haven’t read it. It’s quite an eye opener.
Erin - sounds like you’re doing some good work :t:
Must buy you both a pint of Ubuntu cola if we ever meet!
All the best
Andrew
). I don't really like buying stuff on line if I can avoid it - I've never used what'sitbay and don't even have a Paypal account. My last pair of binoculars I bought from Loch of the Lowes and got a bungee type neck strap for my camera from the RSPB shop at Loch Leven when I was there last year.
