Day 16 - The Butchers and The Weekly Shop

Day 16

Okay so after my realisation that going to Farm Shops for all of my fruit/veg/ meat was quite nice, it also worked out pretty expensive. And if I was going to survive without running out of money and spending it all on food, i decided i needed to be more clever about where I bought my goods. Luckily 5 minutes drive around the corner from me is a small town centre and I'm kinda luckily to live in a not so well off area, so everyone really is looking to get everything as cheap as they can - especially when it comes to food. I decided to arm myself with a cool-box to keep anything I had cool, as I also planned on going to get the milk from that farm (which is a bit more expensive, but i love that milk so i'm not giving that up too!). My first stop was the butchers. I walked in and asked straight away if I could take the stuff in my own box without plastic and I was met with a confused face and the statement "why wouldn't i let you take it in your own box?". I explained to the lady the issues I had with the supermarkets and she honestly couldn't believe their responses to my needs. Our butchers isn't overly expensive either, far cheaper than the farm shop and the quality of the meat from there is phenomenally better than the stuff you get at the supermarkets anyway. So i bought 12 rashers of bacon and 2 minted lamb chops - as they are my partners favourite.

So after this I went a couple of shops down to see if I could get some salmon from a fishmonger/ newsagent type shop. On the way in I noticed they did a large variety of fruit and veg, most in bowls that were a £1 each - slightly less quality than the supermarkets, but almost all of it was plastic free, so I opted to get some potatoes, a swede (as I know supermarkets have those wrapped) and some onions. The guy at the fish counter agreed I could use my own box, which wasn't a problem at all. But when I asked for two fillets he said you have to buy the whole fish, which he could fillet for me, as they sell theirs by the fish. So i picked the smallest salmon, which came to £8, and he descaled it, and then filleted it in front of me. He cut it into 4 fillets and put it in my box and kindly added a bit of ice to keep it chilled for me. It worked out the same or even better than the supermarket price, as the pieces of salmon were big, and usually 2 fillets would cost roughly £4-£5 so it worked out fine. The guy at the till though did try twice to put my veg in plastic bags, but I just abruptly said no no please no plastic and showed him the bag i had already put on the counter. He asked if i was sure, and then laughed and shook his head as if i was a mad woman. I might start getting a reputation around my local shops for this, but hey, i don't care lol.

My next stop was Sainsburys, where i needed some tinned goods and the last of the veg i required (which actually turned out to be just celery for the stew I'm cooking right now). Unfortunately no where seems to do unwrapped celery, and I wanted my stew, so I did buy a pack (Bad i know!). I also bought a tonne of tinned tomatoes, soup, beans and tuna. What annoyed me about the Tuna was, if you buy 4 tins that are in a multi-pack wrapped in plastic, it costs you £3.70. If you don't want the plastic, but want 4 tins of tuna to buy individually, it will cost you £1 a tin equalling at £4. I'm not sure how having a small amount of plastic wrapped around it would bring the price down.. It really baffles me and is something that seems inherently wrong to me. Why? So i skipped the multipack and opted for the single tins instead. Got me some salad cream in a glass container as well as tomato puree too.  I also got some butter and other bits (including painkillers - still in pain with the wisdom tooth!).

After sainsburys I then went to the bakers and bought a loaf of bread (unsliced - because if they slice it for you they put it in a plastic bag) which I got in a paper bag. After this, me and my partner went for a drive up to get the milk, which I have begun to love doing. It's nice to see the cows, it's novel using the machine and I saw they do ice cream so i've vouched to go back and try some :).

With that shop over I've come home pretty triumphantly knowing i've significantly reduced my plastic use for the weekly shop, and quite easily and cheaply this time! And i feel like shouting take that supermarkets and your overly crazy rules on meat/fish handling.

Anyhow, i'm hungry, so until tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!