Local And Slow Food FAQs

What is local food ?

Local means different things to different people!
It can mean from same country / region / county / town or village
Local (eg Norfolk) vs Regional (eg East Anglia)
No legal definition although Waitrose regard as local food as any food produced within 30 miles of where it is sold

Food quality – fresh produce consumed sooner after harvest may taste better
Gastronomy – enables rare breed and varieties to be maintained
Polyculture – encourages multi-cropping rather than monoculture
Food security – reduces reliance on oil-dependent imported and transported foods
Local economy – strengthens local community financially by encouraging money spent on food to circulate locally

Cost – can be more expensive then food bought in supermarkets through economies of scale
Food miles – may be no reduction if food has travelled to a supermarket depot a long way away and then back to a local store
Environmental impact – local food may not have the smallest carbon footprint eg UK tomatoes grown under glass require greater energy input than tomatoes imported from Italy that are sun-ripened

According to consultant Henry Brown local food currently makes up about 1.5% of the total UK food market with sales of £2.3bn
With the right approach from retailers and producers the market could be worth around £15.6bn by 2018
Key to this would be a system of accreditation for retailers, the development of local food hubs to aid distribution and joint marketing initiatives between small producers

Slow Food began in 1986 when an Italian journalist Carlo Petrini visited Rome and saw a new branch of McDonalds at the foot of the Spanish Steps
Carlo decided it was necessary to set up ’slow food’ to combat ‘fast food”
The Slow Food movement is now active in over 100 countries through local branches or ‘convivia’ which organise tastings, themed dinners, visits and educational initiatives
There are around 40 convivia in the UK (including London) with around 2,000 members
The logo is a golden snail
The aim is to help people to enjoy good food

Food should taste Good – modern obsession with shelf-life,standardisation and uniformity result in bland food that doesn’t taste as good as food that has been produced locally with care, pride and passion
Food should be Clean: it should be produced in a sustainable way without any negative impact on our environment and a minimum of artificial intervention
Food should be produced in a Fair way: its producers should not be exploited but should be paid a fair amount for their skill and labour

FARMERS MARKETS are somewhere you can frequently find Slow and Local foods

Farmers only – all the produce on sale is grown or produced by the seller – there is no middleman
Specified origin For London Farmers Markets all farms must be within 100 miles of the M25, many are much closer and some farms are within the M25
Frequency Most farmers markets take place once a week, usually on a Saturday morning
Venues Frequently held at a school or car park

No. Some producers are certified organic, some are pesticide-free, some are neither. Caveat emptor!

The food is fresh, local and seasonal
Customers love to meet the people who grow their food
If customers have concerns about pesticides or animal welfare they can ask the producer direct

Typically fresh fruit and vegetables, salads, cheeses, meats, juice, bread and eggs
Frequently honey, jams, cakes, fish and herbs
Not every stall comes every week