Food for Thought

[Silverfox]

While in shopping last night I got to thinking about the cost of fruit and veg. I just can't work it out how they calculate their prices.

Courgettes grow at a rapid speed, and you get loads per plant yet are highly priced from £1.66per kg - £7.45per kg (took prices of nett today) I know they are seasonal - but really what is seasonal in the supermarkets now anyway???. Now compare this to something like a cauliflower. You only get 1 per plant and they need quite a lot of space and they are only £0.66 each.

I know what I would grow if I did this for a living.

[blackkitty]

I'm not sure exactly how they calculate them but it could be something to do with shelf life and whether they can be cold stored. also its often what the consumer will pay. You can be sure that the grower is not getting much of that £7.45/kg

[Lozzie]

Yeah. The money is probably spent on transporting, packaging, etc. The supermarkets also have to make a profit. One thing I don't understand is why the supermarkets tend to jack up the price of fruit and veg that are actually in season (for example, ever notice how the price of strawberries seems to shoot up during the summer months?). I would have thought that, if fruit was in season over here in Britain, surely they wouldn't have to spend loads importing them from halfway across the world and pass the cost on to the buyers?
As for the whole idea of seasonality, I believe that it's still around. Indeed, it seems to be an important part of our culture. Ever noticed how we associate certain foods with certain events and holidays? For example, leek soup is traditionally served here in Wales on the 1st of March (St. Davids Day), when it's in season. People often eat lamb for Easter (March-April), strawberries and cream during the Wimbledon tennis matches (June-July), pumpkins at Halloween and turkey/duck/goose at Christmas. These events happen at the same time these foods are in season. Take a look here for more info. You might be surprised.
Yeah, I believe that seasonality is not dead, although it has had a nasty beating by supermarket competition.

[sewer rat]

Another reason for the high percentage of imports is that to supply most (though not all) supermarkets, the supplier has to supply the whole chain, not just their local supermarket. And there aren't that many farmers / producers of large enough size to do that without joining a co-operative growers group. A farmer I know up here supplies 16000 eggs a day and he is one of the smaller sub-contracted producers for the largest supermarket chain in UK.

[blackkitty]

If you read 'Shopped' (unfortunately I can't remember who wrote it and I've lent out my copy) you will soon see why supermarket prices are distorted. Take a look at www.bigbarn.co.uk to find smaller local suppliers.