We've been away! [Added August, 08, 2009] But now we're back, and the site will be changing.  It's two years since we started, and things have changed a lot in the realm of local food, and the nation's concept of it.  We're going to have to keep up, and hope you'll continue using t... Read More

The Era of Cheap Food... [Added February, 16, 2009] is apparently, over.  Prices for wheat, rice and vegetable oil are rising across the world, making a daily loaf from any of the big bakers up to 40% more expensive than it was last year.  The prices of free-range poultry are 47% more expens... Read More

changing of the seasons [Added February, 10, 2009] With the season for wild game almost over, we say make the most of what is still available, and if you can, freeze some for March.  One revelation for this month is forced rhubarb, grown mainly in the Wakefield Triangle of West Yorkshire.  ... Read More

Live exports- [Added January, 28, 2009] Horsemeat is largely taboo in the UK, but that doesn't mean it isn't raised here and sold abroad. A relatively unknown and definitely unsavoury side of British farming is the raising of horses for the European meat markets.  Whilst live exp... Read More

The new fight against cheap food - celebrity style- [Added January, 27, 2009] Times are very tough.  2009 will be easy for no one, even if it is only weathering the endless pessimism of the press.However, in this new climate, we are seeing a resurgence of interest in how our food is produced.  Perhaps this is somethi... Read More

Happy New Year!!! [Added January, 05, 2009] Let's hope for better things than predicted this year.  The desperately sad news about retailers large and small (yes, a lot of them sold tat, but that isn't the fault of the majority of people who work for them), banks and the state of things i... Read More

Merry Christmas!!! [Added December, 24, 2008] Everyone at the Local Food Directory would like to wish all our producers, supporters and their customers a very Happy Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year.  See you in 2009!  ... Read More

Marguerite Patten... [Added December, 19, 2008] Is Waitrose/Ocado's advisor on their Festive Food Go Further campaign.  Whilst we don't advocate using supermarkets for your main food shopping, this campaign is a sensible idea in these rocky times.  And Marguerite is a legend.  170 c... Read More

Rialto Market [Added November, 25, 2008] We've been reading about markets in general here, and one of the oddest we've come across is the Rialto Market in Venice.  Founded in around 1097, it's been feeding the city for centuries, with most of the fruit and vegetables coming from nearby... Read More

Samuel Johnson- [Added November, 17, 2008] 'A man seldom thinks with more earnestness of any thing than he does of his dinner; and if he cannot get that well-dressed, he should be suspected of inaccuracy in other things.'... Read More

Cold nights and curry powder- [Added November, 17, 2008] Ever wondered exactly what's in it?  Me too, so I looked it up.Greatest first:  Coriander, Cumin, Turmeric, Fenugreek and ginger.  Then a pinch of the following:  Celery, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, caraway, fennel, car... Read More

Christian culinary patron saints- [Added October, 30, 2008] Just in case you were wondering- Bakers - St ZitaCooks - Saints Martha and LaurenceFishermen - St AndrewGrocers - St MichaelWine merchants - St Vincent ... Read More

How to throw a party- [Added October, 30, 2008] British Forces Ball, 1746:Punch recipe - The bowl was a marble basin...filled with four large barrels of brandy, eight barrels of filtered water, twenty-five thousands citrons, eighty pints of lemon juice, thirteen hundredweight of sugar, five pounds... Read More

Medlars- [Added October, 20, 2008] Are anyone else's medlars falling from the tree?  I've put them in a box, but it's quite early and they're still fairly small.  Any ideas?... Read More

and you thought you just cut it up- [Added October, 20, 2008] No, carving is an art, as we have found out.  Here are the correct terms for carving this month's delicious seasonal foods: Partridge, woodcock and pigeon are thighed.Goose is reared.Mallard is unbraced.Rabbit is unlaced.Crab is tamed.Lobst... Read More

Happy Birthday Paddington! [Added October, 13, 2008] Who is fifty today.Our favourite bear is a glutton, and in celebration of his birthday, we have the hierarchy of gastronomy:GastronomeGourmetFriand (epicure) Goulu  (glutton)Goinfre (greedy-guts)Like us, Paddington falls into the last categ... Read More

recipe- [Added July, 28, 2008] okay, so we've been away, but now we're back, with some recipes on a budget.  this is the first one, and it comes from the fantastic Jocasta Innes and her legendary Pauper's Cookbook.  Spinach and Bacon Salad with CroutonsServes 4 450g... Read More

local food on a budget- [Added July, 14, 2008] this is a subject we discuss quite a lot here, and one that comes up regularly in the press.  sometimes local food is seen as the preserve of people with twenty pounds to spend on a chicken.  not true!!!local food, when properly managed is ... Read More

happy happy [Added July, 04, 2008] Independence Day to our American friends.  Not that we need much of an excuse to stoke up a barbeque and eat too much.  All those burgers and sausages are a perfect foil for all the delicious salads around at the moment.  If you get a ... Read More

final fling with asparagus- [Added June, 25, 2008]  the season is coming to a close on British asparagus, but it's still wonderful.  if, like us, you've eaten it constantly since the beginning of the season, finding new things to do with it can become a challenge.  This little recipe i... Read More

this from the newspaper- [Added June, 11, 2008] A Tesco store refused to sell barbecue sauce to a customer because it contained a tiny amount of alcohol and she couldn't prove her age. Claire Birchell, 25, was told she could not buy the Jack Daniel's barbecue sauce which has an alcohol content of... Read More

like totally- [Added June, 09, 2008] It's been busy here with one thing and another.  We hope you caught Lucy's interview with The Grocer, and we're all eating tons of asparagus.  Make the most of it now, as it will be out of season soon, and we'll be left with that woody stuf... Read More

something to chew on- [Added May, 28, 2008] There is hardly anything in the world that someone cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price alone are that person's lawful prey."  --John Ruskin (1819 - 1900)... Read More

the times.... [Added May, 24, 2008] Jane Shilling wrote an interesting article on food and identity in yesterday's Times 2.  She was particularly concerned with the divide between food and identity created after the Second World War and how difficult she believes it will be to eve... Read More

gainsborough old hall....... [Added May, 07, 2008] the wonderful gainsborough old hall is the setting tonight for a food history programme, starring clarissa dickson wright.  her first words on seeing the astonishing kitchens were - it's a cathedral of food!  fantastic.  i want one of ... Read More

feeling crabby? [Added May, 07, 2008] so are we.  crab season is here, and with this weather, crab mayonnaise makes perfect picnic sandwiches.  by far the best recipe i have tasted is gordon ramsay's, so here it is:300g white crabmeat1 shallot, peeled and very finely chopped&fr... Read More

tick the box.... [Added May, 02, 2008] we voted.  we hope you did too.  as we'd spent all year complaining about the politicians, it seemed the right thing to do.so people, where's the results? ... Read More

i'll have what she's having- [Added April, 29, 2008] because soon, i won't have a choice.'In fact, of the 7100 named varieties of apples growing in the U.S. in the 1800s, some 6800 are probably now extinct. Ninety-five percent of almost 600 garden bean varieties, 95% of more than 500 cabbage varieties,... Read More

a little statistic.... [Added April, 29, 2008] According to an article by Ford C. Runge and Benjamin Seneuar, the USA now burns annually the corn-based biofuel equivalent of the food needs of the 82 poorest countries in the world.  Seems logical.  Not.In a nutshell:'Biofuels may have ev... Read More

what we found in the Big Apple- [Added April, 25, 2008] I last went to New York seven years ago, and worked there for a while.  Good food, not packed with sugar was hard to find, and natural dairy products (like ordinary butter) were impossible, even in 'gourmet' stores.  Things have definitely ... Read More

this is good people... [Added April, 25, 2008] this week, Richard had to work in New York, so I tagged along, keen to see whether the new cult of farmers' markets and organic eating was all it was cracked up to be.  pictures of what i found will follow.first, i wanted to post this little ima... Read More

the newsletter! [Added April, 18, 2008] we've been made aware that the newsletter doesn't reach everyone who signs up.  to this end, we have spent the last couple of weeks working really hard on getting the system working so that everyone who wants it, will get it.  a new one is ... Read More

its been a while... [Added April, 18, 2008] because we've been away, getting busy with new ideas for the website.  which we'll share with you very soon.   The New Statesman leads with the headline FOOD CRISIS this issue.  It's scary stuff.   ... Read More

when we were young- [Added April, 07, 2008] as i was weighing up today whether i really needed that yoghurt, i remembered meal times at my godparents house.  he was a carpenter, and she was, and is an incredible 'home maker', mum and grandma.  she went into service at fourteen, and m... Read More

this morning- [Added April, 06, 2008] and this was the view at nine this morning.  crazy stuff.  ... Read More

saturday [Added April, 06, 2008] amazing.  Saturday morning, at around seven, i took this photo from the bedroom.  the whole day was beautiful in our little corner of the world.  apart from when it started hailing at five o'clock....... Read More

a value potato----??? [Added April, 03, 2008] the working day is done, the wine is open, and the goggle is on.  then along comes an advertisement for tesco's value potatoes.  i repeat: value potatoes.  surely the potato is the very essence of a value food?   so cheap, th... Read More

salt of the earth, no sea - what? [Added April, 03, 2008] Salt.  If you are anything like me, you love it.  Too much.  Yep, we all know too much salt is bad for us, causing everything from cellulite to heart attacks.  The thing is, there are lots of different kinds of salt, and knowing a... Read More

cod vs. coley [Added April, 02, 2008] We took a little jaunt to The East Beach Cafe at the weekend.  Bracing walk along the beach, followed by some good grub, what could be better?  This restaurant is committed to local food and their menu is excellent, as is their fish and chi... Read More

ramsons.... [Added April, 01, 2008] which is the smart name for lovely wild garlic, which will be growing somewhere near you now.  Soft like silky spinach, and with a fantastic gently taste, it's perfect for people who like a less pungent garlic flavour, and brings out the taste o... Read More

not what it says on the tin- [Added March, 27, 2008] This is taken from the BBC news website this morning:Food giant Heinz has been cleared by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) of misleading the public over its Farmers' Market soup range.The watchdog rejected 25 complaints that the advert impli... Read More

earth hour [Added March, 26, 2008] On friday, at 8pm, you can help save the world.  it won't take much, just turn off all the appliances you don't need right there and then.  sit down, ignore the telly, light a candle and talk to each other.earth hour 2007 was pioneered by t... Read More

happy easter!!!!! [Added March, 20, 2008] we wish you all a great Easter, whether you're hunting eggs, cooking for thousands, running for election, going to church, staying in bed, riding your bike, or in fact, whatever- on monday, we are going to cook a suckling pig, in honour of all t... Read More

goodbye overmind.... [Added March, 19, 2008] this week has seen the sad, premature death of anthony minghella and the demise of arthur c. clarke.  minghella probably had his best films to come, clarke's most beautiful work had been and passed in the canon.  we knew that when almasy le... Read More

more hammy news... [Added March, 19, 2008] Pork ribs are a really economical way to feed lots of people, and they are delicious.  Our friend Sammy goes into a daze at the mention of ribs, honey, sticky, salt and pepper, garlic - he can talk for hours about the various merits.  In an... Read More

what price your bacon sandwich? [Added March, 18, 2008] this was the billboard that greeted me at the tube station this morning.  these adverts are all over the press at the moment.  take a second to look and think about what this means, and if you value your British bacon, ham, rolled sparerib,... Read More

I C U.... [Added March, 17, 2008] The wonderful Clive James writes eloquently on the loss of our personal freedom in Britain.  We at the Directory don't live in an Orwellian nightmare, but the office sits at the centre of this madness, and we see it every day.If you have ever wo... Read More

so good, you can almost taste it.... [Added March, 12, 2008] we are big fans of dan lepard's beautiful website, dedicated to one thing - truly great bread.  there's loads of information on baking, types of bread, and even which knife to cut it with!  mr lepard is nothing if not passionate about what ... Read More

informed choices.... [Added March, 07, 2008] with more information than ever out there, it seems that there are more issues that need thought, attention, and most importantly, decisions.  is our food healthy and sustainable?  does my car use too much fuel?  are my clothes ethical... Read More

off topic... [Added March, 06, 2008] but then this is the view from here.  sad news is that everyone's favourite dirty dancer, patrick swayze has got pancreatic cancer.  it's a subject close to our heart here at the directory, and most people don't know anything about it, so h... Read More

make it stop...... [Added March, 04, 2008] Americans now spend more money on fast food than on higher education, personal computers, computer software, or new cars. They spend more on fast food than on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, videos, and recorded music -- combined. This is ... Read More

the delia effect..... [Added March, 03, 2008] It seems that delia's new book will be a hugely successful (no doubt) exercise in product placement.  frozen aubergine slices?  spray foam yorkshire puddings?  big thumbs down.  learning to cook (a bit), to feed yourself and your ... Read More

fairtrade fortnight.... [Added February, 29, 2008] has started.One of the best things about the fairtrade movement is that it has empowered people growing highly desirable, high profit commodities such as sugar, cocoa and coffee who were then exploited by unscrupulous middle men or governments.  ... Read More

no 'did the earth move for you?' jokes please... [Added February, 27, 2008] this is serious!  we wish everyone in North Lincolnshire all the best after last night's earthquake.  Latest reports say 5.3 on the Richter Scale, which is pretty big.   ... Read More

bringing home the bacon? [Added February, 26, 2008] British pig farmers are currently living on a knife edge, with the cost of hard feed hitting unknown highs. Many are losing up to £25 per animal.Pork, ham and bacon are staple products in many kitchens, and have long represented pound for pound... Read More

Get Well Soon [Added February, 25, 2008] On Farming Today this morning, we learnt that 85 percent of the lamb served in British hospitals is imported. In our eyes, this is madness. Patients are even more in need of the nutrients only available in fresh food, not frozen, imported food. ... Read More

Not so fantastic plastic [Added February, 25, 2008] This picture comes from the website of clothes manufacturers and all round good eggs Howies. On the same day I came across this picture, I listened to a radio program about 'mermaid's tears' - tiny grains of plastic that are now found on every bea... Read More

Bridie..... [Added February, 20, 2008] Office dog and all round champion of the world.... Read More

The Western Weald.... [Added February, 19, 2008] ...is an area of the South Downs currently excluded from the National Park, and it includes Petworth and Midhurst. This area is currently exposed to high levels of additional development under current government proposals. If it were to be lost under... Read More

Reason's to be cheerful [Added February, 17, 2008] This was the weather that we walked the dogs in on Sunday, proving that Spring has definitely sprung. Roll on the light nights!... Read More