Latest River Cottage series

[dexterdoglancashire]

So what did you think? I was rather impressed that HFW tackled everyones negative thoughts and concerns straight on - the one I was winging on about was the cost comparison between cheap and organic chicken. I've now been converted! I sort of knew the conditions cheap chickens were brought up in, but never saw it first hand until tonight! Organic/free range for me now!
The only thing I couldnt watch was the killing of his own chicken - I'm too "chicken" to watch something like that!
What does everyone else think? DDL

[Crazy Chickie]

Argh, missed the begining, saw the second half though. V. good!

[burnie]

Not what I expected,initial thoughts were not as good as previous series,but he's trying to do something different so not too hasty to condemn it just yet.
I trust it will grow on me,I still like the principles he puts forward.

[Alison]

Was pretty much what I was expecting and he was emphasising the very things which made us reject cheap chickens some time ago. The only problem with things like that is when you get people like a couple of the people on tonight who don't really want to listen and aren't particularly fussed about the quality of food they put in their bodies - I for one care deeply about my diet as I'm fully bought into the you are what you eat philosophy. I believe that good food tastes better and generally is better and I don't want chickens (or any other animals) living in appalling conditions on my behalf, if that means that I eat smaller helpings of meat or cheaper cuts (no problems with all the stew recipes on this site!) then so be it, you can easily pad meat out with pulses and veg etc. Sorry for a bit of a rant but it's something which is very important to me and I don't understand why it isn't obvious to so many people!

[kirsty b]

I missed it. I wonder if it will be repreated sometime later in the week the way some channels do wih certain progs?
Its because of HFW that I started tryin to grow my own in thr first place.

[annie trip]

I'm with burnie on this one,but at least we get to see some new hugh!!

[Earthbabe]

Missed it and we were so busy over the last few days I forgot to ask Mr E to record it for me. We were looking at the organic/free range chooks at the market on sunday and were amazed at the size. Guess what we will be buying at the end of the month (ie next Winchester farmers' market)

[Mrs Dobby]

We both thoroughly enjoy it! It has finally convinced Mr D that cheap chicken isnt worth buying (something I've been saying to him for a few years) and Hugh's whole 'food' ethos came over very well! Found myself noddding in agreement with everything he was saying, and it was good to see others being 'converted'! Hugh's ethos is something that I wholeheartedly endorse, reading his website a few years ago was a real eye opener, and ever since that time I have tried to follow his ethical stance, last nights prog has made Mr D a lot more receptive to what I've been saying too! Yes it was different to the River Cottage and Cook on the Wild Side, but it did seem a natural progression to me personally! I will be eagerly watching every episode!

[Alison]

The two books that really made me see the light so to speak were Not on the Label by Felicity Lawrence and A Life Stripped Bare by Leo Hickman both of which I bought about 18 months ago. These put all the stuff that I'd suspected into context and gave me the final impedus to make the extra effort to turn our home and diet around. We weren't doing that badly, have grown some veg for years and have always tried not to waste resources but there were loads of little things we could do extra. People like Hugh have helped with this as I find him very inspirational although, as others have already said, we can't all manage as much as he can in our day to day lives but at least we can try and I would have thought that getting part way there is still loads better than not bothering at all. I wonder perhaps if some of the people on this forum perhaps got less out of last night's programme as they already got the message and the biggest challenge is to get the kind of people who were on the programme to watch it, this would then perhaps get more people to change what they buy which would in turn force supermarkets to change their attidtudes............... You can always hope!

[monkeybum]

I thought it was fantastic.....as usual. I used to be the £1.99 chicken advocate but converted a couple of years back and I wouldn't even think of it now. It makes me physically sick when I think of it. I do think it is important to watch the chicken being killed (Hugh's one) because it is all part of the process of knowing how your food was raised and slaughtered. After all it doesn't just appear on your plate. I think that woman was right last night when she said you don't make the link between fresh meat and an animal. I used to refuse to eat anything with a face (ie fish with head left on) because you are removed from the whole animal killing process. People block that part out. I think if your reminded a few people they would have a bit more respect for where their meat actually comes from and the importance of organic and free range.

[Palustris]

Funny, how many people buy organic chicken because of the conditions in which many chickens are kept to supply the cheap meat market, BUT they still go and buy 'Organic' chcicken pellets to use in their gardens. The only thing organic about them (and the hens) is the food on which they are fed. The only way you can get enough bird droppings is if the hens are kept all together in a confined area. Oraganic does not equate to fully free range either.
Have to confess to not watching the programme, cannot stand the bloke myself, sorry but each to his own.




PS. Wife just said that at least he did not do his usual 500 cloves of garlic per person thing, so I suppose it was better than much of his cookery!

[Birdie Wife]

Great programme, there's not enough of this kind of thing around. We're quite used to seeing the kind of shocking images shown and I think in some ways many people are becoming de-sensitised to it, which it how they can switch off and pretend it's not relevant to them.

I had to sympathise with the two people who couldn't come around 100% by the end of the programme, maybe what they were shown was so out of their ken that they found it really difficult to fully assimilate what they learned - no frame of reference. It must be very, very difficult for people on a tight budget. But good on them for not eating chicken any more - better than buying the cheap stuff. Everyone has the choice about what they feed themselves with, and if you're going to eat meat then you should be able to fully respect the life of the animal that has died to feed you.

[Waffler]

We thought it was a good show and, once again, great for showing the relationship between animal and meat: I for one am guilty of being hypocritical where meat is concerned and know how easy it is to buy a pack of meat not resembling the original animal in any way - so good for Hugh for reminding us. I'm surprised nobody turned veggie after watching the slaughter.
What was a little disappointing was that there was so little difference in cost between the 'good' and 'bad' meals. OH and I often shout at the TV when families with not too much money buy ready meals and take-aways, telling them if they made stuff from scratch they'd save money. Unfortunatetly it seems this isn't really the case - or not unless they buy the value packs of meat anyway. I know Hugh managed to make a great soup from the carcass, as I'm sure many of us would, but we thought there would've been a greater saving in the first place.
The one woman who wouldn't convert annoyed me a bit, when she said something along the lines of it being 'disrespectful' (or similar) to eat the chicken's feet. Surely part of the point of the exercise was to demonstrate that in rearing your own meat, you show the animal respect by wasting as little of the product as possible. (I did laugh to myself when they buried the head so shallow in the ground: Hugh will have that up again in no time when he plants his veg!)

[WiZeR]

Wasn't impressed tbh. I'm not a fan of 'reality' tv. This programme format could have been done by anyone. It was so far removed from what we are used to from the HFW RC Franchise. I don't see where else this can go? Same format each week, different morons.

[Birdie Wife]

That is a danger I'll admit. But those who've tried doing programmes on ethical eating before (think Gordon Ramsey) have never really had the concept worked out properly and have failed in what they were trying to do. Although Jamie Oliver accomplished quite a lot . HFW's programme at least seems to be steered more by HFW and less by the producers sitting in the office trying to decide what they want people to watch.

And as for that guy who didn't like veg and wouldn't even TRY any ... don't get me started...