Saturday, August 30, 2008
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
NOW: National Organic Week line up announced
39 listed events thus far from Sligo to Kerry, from tasting and farm open days to full foodie festivals
for more, click on this link: clicky
got more events to add? Are you happier with this year's week than last year's?
for more, click on this link: clicky
got more events to add? Are you happier with this year's week than last year's?
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Welcome!
Welcome to O.B. People�s Organic Food Co-op blog, we're happy you stopped by. This is where you�ll find photos of the market and customers, favorite recipes both new and old, food tips, and much, much more.
So pull up your hammock, pour yourself a cup of organic green tea, get a handful of lavender shortbread cookies, and join us for weekly posts.
If there's something you want to see on the blog, by all means let us know. After all, at People's Co-op, You own the store!
Friday, August 22, 2008
WRAP it up: how much food is wasted, and who is to blame?
1.3 million unopened yoghurt cartons are thrown out by householders in the UK. Every year? No, every day. That�s according to a report from May of this year, called the WRAP report.
WRAP, a not-for-profit company established in the UK in 2000 to provide practical solutions for a range of waste issues, have conducted what they claim is the first comprehensive study into household food waste in the world.
Over 2700 households in England and Wales were interviewed; several weeks later, just over 2100 of them had their waste collected for analysis - with their signed consent.
The figures, when taken together, seem startling. The headline figures suggest that �10 billion pounds of food, which amounts to 6.7 million tonnes of household food, is wasted each year in the UK.
The more the figures are examined, the more suprising they become:
� 1/3 of all food purchased in households is thrown away
� 61% of this was considered �avoidable�
� 10% of food discarded is in date and perfectly useable
Taking food stuffs specifically, 4.4 million apples, 1 million slices of ham and 440,000 ready meals per day are thrown out. The report claims that this involved 18 million tonnes of Co2 emissions, because every tonne of food waste means 4.5 tonnes of Co2 emissions.
In a context of rising farming and food prices, the figures seem baffling. Every day it seems, there are reports of people complaining about the price of food. Farmer�s costs have spiralled, with the farm gate prices struggling to keep up.
In the developing world, food riots abound: people there spend up to 80% of their income on food: the price of food has risen by over 50% this year already, on top of a 27% rise in 2007, according to the UN�s FAO.
In the western world, food is produced, processed, transported, sold, driven home and then, 33% of the time, thrown into the bin for landfill. And in landfill, methane gas is given off, which is far more destructive to than Co2.
Fresh fruits, vegetables and salads make up the largest category of waste, according to the WRAP report, clocking in at 1.4 million tonnes per year. What this means is that an incredible 45% of salad leaves bought in the UK aren�t eaten. Even cakes are thrown out � 82,000 per day. There is some strange sort of comfort in the fact that beer fares far better than anything else � just 2900 cans or bottles of beer are chucked each day.
One positive from the report was the finding that almost 70% of those who took their own notes on the food wasted were prepared to do something about it.
There has been some controversy about the research, however.
For one thing, 2/3 of food waste in the UK is produced by the non-householder, yet the publicity and campaign has focused primarily on the householder. While the lovefood hate waste campaign has plenty of handy tips (see below and the link), the householder is not actually the main problem as regards food waste.
In total, 20 million tonnes of food waste is produced annually in the UK, with the producers, processors, instuitutions, retailers and others involved outside the household accounting for 13 million tonnes.
As Alex Renton pointed out in the Times: �There's a glaring gap in the WRAP report. It doesn't mention how much food is wasted before it comes into our homes... the supermarkets waste food far more lavishly and for much worse reasons than we poor house-spouses. They over-order fresh produce because they can pass the costs of disposal back to the supplier. They reject up to 60 per cent of perfectly good vegetables because they do not fit exact shape and quality standards. They bully us with daft use-by dates. And, worst of all, in meat processing as much as a third of the edible tissue of animals is discarded because it doesn't meet the supermarkets' narrow definitions of the sellable�.
There is a lot of sense in this: Honey may be fairly unique in its keeping qualities - in 1800, honey was eaten by its discoverers in a pyramid - yet pure Irish honey has a use by date on it that stretches no more than a couple of years down the line.
Across the western world, there has been a trend towards the individualisation of guilt. Blaming the individual fits in far better with the way politics and the economy work these days.
Here in Ireland, so many environmental campaigns have this sort of focus - most obviously the Power of One Campaign.
This approach lets the main culprits off the hook: if you can get away with shifting the primary blame onto the individual for waste created, then business can be encouraged to adopt voluntary codes of practice and look for wiggle room behind closed doors.
At the same time, the state can technically lower taxes but then also introduce charges like the �bin tax�, which effect poorer people, and people with bigger families more. And poorer people often have bigger families with few if any composting options, to compound their situation.
It is clear that all players in the global agri-food system need to step up, not just the householder. Farming and food processing by-products can be an asset for use in a range of products including animal feeds, fibres, biofuels and thickening agents; technology transfer can help the developing world reduce its waste � 40% of produced food in the developing world doesn�t reach the consumer due to inadequacies in processing, distribution and storage.
In the UK, the charity FareShare takes companies� surplus and waste and distributes it as edible food through a community network of over 500 organisations that help disadvantaged people.
According to a Food Navigator report, this meant that �FareShare helped save 2,000 tonnes of edible food from landfill, providing meals for 3.3m people. This in turn meant 13,000 tonnes less carbon dioxide was emitted into the environment�.
But just how applicable are the UK�s facts, acts and figures to the Irish situation? There are important similarities and differences: Ireland has a lower population density, but is relatively similar in terms of eating habits and multiple retailer penetration.
As in the case almost everywhere else, there is no specific standalone research into food waste here. However, the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and the Environmental Protection Agency do have both stats and targets on what is called biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) � decomposable waste including food, garden, paper, cardboard, textile and wood wastes.
According to the EPA, BMW in 2006 totalled 2,279,550 tonnes. BMW thus made up 74% of all waste (which totalled 3.1 million tonnes), while the food and garden waste component of this totalled just under 820,000 tonnes, or 36%. This �biowaste� figure of 36% includes both domestic and commercial waste.
Overall, this c.2.28 million tonne figure represents an increase of about 177% of the amount generated in 1995. There has been but a 3% increase in the diversion rates from landfill from 2005 to 2006.
The National Strategy on Biodegradable Waste aims to rollout segregated bins for food and garden waste, or �brown bins�. The aim is for these to be available at 40% of what are called �all suitable households� by 2010, 45% by 2013 and (a minimum of) 50% by 2016.
For homes not due to be facilitated with a brown bin, there are targets for home composting: 35% coverage by 2010 and 40% by 2016. By 2016, it is estimated that this will result in just over 330,000 tonnes of food and garden waste being diverted from landfill, which is over 10 times what is currently being done, according to the most recent (2006) figures.
All of this will require an awful lot of work, partly because of the 177% increase in waste outlined above.
The Environmental Protection Agency is managing the National Waste Prevention Programme.
When I asked the EPA about food waste, they suggested that research is currently being conducted (called STRIVE) but it will not provide the level of food specific detail the WRAP report in the UK has.
They also pointed out some of what�s being done in particular sectors: �We fund a major hotels sectoral project called Green Hospitality Award�(which) provides them with expertise, know-how and assessments of their resource use and waste generation, including waste from kitchens and catering. Over 150 of the biggest hotels in Ireland have signed up already. We would hope to expand this project into the general restaurant and contract catering areas with a view to reducing the generation of food waste, and its disposal, in these sectors.�
They also pointed out that there are local authority supports and initiatives, the Green Schools project and the An Taisce new Green Homes Project, the latter of which is supported by the National Waste Prevention Programme.
This is all very well, but there is a lot more still, in those famous words a lot more to do. Waste generation levels, policy and planning issues may of course alter both the predictions and targets.
The Department suggests that to reach its targets, �substantial provision of alternative treatment capacity will be required�. They also point out that �a major review of waste policy is now commencing�, which will examine the potential of new technologies such as mechanical-biological treatment.
In the meantime, why not have a look below and see what you might be able to do:
WRAP, a not-for-profit company established in the UK in 2000 to provide practical solutions for a range of waste issues, have conducted what they claim is the first comprehensive study into household food waste in the world.
Over 2700 households in England and Wales were interviewed; several weeks later, just over 2100 of them had their waste collected for analysis - with their signed consent.
The figures, when taken together, seem startling. The headline figures suggest that �10 billion pounds of food, which amounts to 6.7 million tonnes of household food, is wasted each year in the UK.
The more the figures are examined, the more suprising they become:
� 1/3 of all food purchased in households is thrown away
� 61% of this was considered �avoidable�
� 10% of food discarded is in date and perfectly useable
Taking food stuffs specifically, 4.4 million apples, 1 million slices of ham and 440,000 ready meals per day are thrown out. The report claims that this involved 18 million tonnes of Co2 emissions, because every tonne of food waste means 4.5 tonnes of Co2 emissions.
In a context of rising farming and food prices, the figures seem baffling. Every day it seems, there are reports of people complaining about the price of food. Farmer�s costs have spiralled, with the farm gate prices struggling to keep up.
In the developing world, food riots abound: people there spend up to 80% of their income on food: the price of food has risen by over 50% this year already, on top of a 27% rise in 2007, according to the UN�s FAO.
In the western world, food is produced, processed, transported, sold, driven home and then, 33% of the time, thrown into the bin for landfill. And in landfill, methane gas is given off, which is far more destructive to than Co2.
Fresh fruits, vegetables and salads make up the largest category of waste, according to the WRAP report, clocking in at 1.4 million tonnes per year. What this means is that an incredible 45% of salad leaves bought in the UK aren�t eaten. Even cakes are thrown out � 82,000 per day. There is some strange sort of comfort in the fact that beer fares far better than anything else � just 2900 cans or bottles of beer are chucked each day.
One positive from the report was the finding that almost 70% of those who took their own notes on the food wasted were prepared to do something about it.
There has been some controversy about the research, however.
For one thing, 2/3 of food waste in the UK is produced by the non-householder, yet the publicity and campaign has focused primarily on the householder. While the lovefood hate waste campaign has plenty of handy tips (see below and the link), the householder is not actually the main problem as regards food waste.
In total, 20 million tonnes of food waste is produced annually in the UK, with the producers, processors, instuitutions, retailers and others involved outside the household accounting for 13 million tonnes.
As Alex Renton pointed out in the Times: �There's a glaring gap in the WRAP report. It doesn't mention how much food is wasted before it comes into our homes... the supermarkets waste food far more lavishly and for much worse reasons than we poor house-spouses. They over-order fresh produce because they can pass the costs of disposal back to the supplier. They reject up to 60 per cent of perfectly good vegetables because they do not fit exact shape and quality standards. They bully us with daft use-by dates. And, worst of all, in meat processing as much as a third of the edible tissue of animals is discarded because it doesn't meet the supermarkets' narrow definitions of the sellable�.
There is a lot of sense in this: Honey may be fairly unique in its keeping qualities - in 1800, honey was eaten by its discoverers in a pyramid - yet pure Irish honey has a use by date on it that stretches no more than a couple of years down the line.
Across the western world, there has been a trend towards the individualisation of guilt. Blaming the individual fits in far better with the way politics and the economy work these days.
Here in Ireland, so many environmental campaigns have this sort of focus - most obviously the Power of One Campaign.
This approach lets the main culprits off the hook: if you can get away with shifting the primary blame onto the individual for waste created, then business can be encouraged to adopt voluntary codes of practice and look for wiggle room behind closed doors.
At the same time, the state can technically lower taxes but then also introduce charges like the �bin tax�, which effect poorer people, and people with bigger families more. And poorer people often have bigger families with few if any composting options, to compound their situation.
It is clear that all players in the global agri-food system need to step up, not just the householder. Farming and food processing by-products can be an asset for use in a range of products including animal feeds, fibres, biofuels and thickening agents; technology transfer can help the developing world reduce its waste � 40% of produced food in the developing world doesn�t reach the consumer due to inadequacies in processing, distribution and storage.
In the UK, the charity FareShare takes companies� surplus and waste and distributes it as edible food through a community network of over 500 organisations that help disadvantaged people.
According to a Food Navigator report, this meant that �FareShare helped save 2,000 tonnes of edible food from landfill, providing meals for 3.3m people. This in turn meant 13,000 tonnes less carbon dioxide was emitted into the environment�.
But just how applicable are the UK�s facts, acts and figures to the Irish situation? There are important similarities and differences: Ireland has a lower population density, but is relatively similar in terms of eating habits and multiple retailer penetration.
As in the case almost everywhere else, there is no specific standalone research into food waste here. However, the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and the Environmental Protection Agency do have both stats and targets on what is called biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) � decomposable waste including food, garden, paper, cardboard, textile and wood wastes.
According to the EPA, BMW in 2006 totalled 2,279,550 tonnes. BMW thus made up 74% of all waste (which totalled 3.1 million tonnes), while the food and garden waste component of this totalled just under 820,000 tonnes, or 36%. This �biowaste� figure of 36% includes both domestic and commercial waste.
Overall, this c.2.28 million tonne figure represents an increase of about 177% of the amount generated in 1995. There has been but a 3% increase in the diversion rates from landfill from 2005 to 2006.
The National Strategy on Biodegradable Waste aims to rollout segregated bins for food and garden waste, or �brown bins�. The aim is for these to be available at 40% of what are called �all suitable households� by 2010, 45% by 2013 and (a minimum of) 50% by 2016.
For homes not due to be facilitated with a brown bin, there are targets for home composting: 35% coverage by 2010 and 40% by 2016. By 2016, it is estimated that this will result in just over 330,000 tonnes of food and garden waste being diverted from landfill, which is over 10 times what is currently being done, according to the most recent (2006) figures.
All of this will require an awful lot of work, partly because of the 177% increase in waste outlined above.
The Environmental Protection Agency is managing the National Waste Prevention Programme.
When I asked the EPA about food waste, they suggested that research is currently being conducted (called STRIVE) but it will not provide the level of food specific detail the WRAP report in the UK has.
They also pointed out some of what�s being done in particular sectors: �We fund a major hotels sectoral project called Green Hospitality Award�(which) provides them with expertise, know-how and assessments of their resource use and waste generation, including waste from kitchens and catering. Over 150 of the biggest hotels in Ireland have signed up already. We would hope to expand this project into the general restaurant and contract catering areas with a view to reducing the generation of food waste, and its disposal, in these sectors.�
They also pointed out that there are local authority supports and initiatives, the Green Schools project and the An Taisce new Green Homes Project, the latter of which is supported by the National Waste Prevention Programme.
This is all very well, but there is a lot more still, in those famous words a lot more to do. Waste generation levels, policy and planning issues may of course alter both the predictions and targets.
The Department suggests that to reach its targets, �substantial provision of alternative treatment capacity will be required�. They also point out that �a major review of waste policy is now commencing�, which will examine the potential of new technologies such as mechanical-biological treatment.
In the meantime, why not have a look below and see what you might be able to do:
- Buy a juicer
- Get a dog
- Don�t be bamboozled by �two for one� or �three for two� deals in supermarkets
- Get a decent home composter
- When in a restaurant with a group, don�t order as individuals, order as a group.
- Grow your own vegetables (and compost the peelings!)
- Use the freezer creatively
- Go here for their food tips
- Consider joining the worldwide freegan movement. Find free food: from forages and barter to growing and bin skipping
Monday, August 18, 2008
Organic milk: real hope on the horizon
At last, organic milk producers in Ireland can finally expand.
Additional quota of 45,000 litres have been made available to them, which could result in up to 750,000 more litres of organic milk being produced in the current milk quota year.
Organic dairy farmers who want to download the form, click here
(for those of you who don't know what any of the quota talk means, essentially organic milk producers were debarred from expanding their enterprises becuase of the historic overproduction of commodities like milk in the EU. It may seem mad in a food shortages world, but its a legacy from the post war period in EU policy and the subsequent food and drink mountains days.)
The Greens, and Trevor Sargent in particular, said they would deliver this sort of action. It seems they are making good on it.
For more, see here
Additional quota of 45,000 litres have been made available to them, which could result in up to 750,000 more litres of organic milk being produced in the current milk quota year.
Organic dairy farmers who want to download the form, click here
(for those of you who don't know what any of the quota talk means, essentially organic milk producers were debarred from expanding their enterprises becuase of the historic overproduction of commodities like milk in the EU. It may seem mad in a food shortages world, but its a legacy from the post war period in EU policy and the subsequent food and drink mountains days.)
The Greens, and Trevor Sargent in particular, said they would deliver this sort of action. It seems they are making good on it.
For more, see here
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Beechlawn organic fruit and vegetable farm part 1: background
Here is an article on an organic vegetable and fruit farm in east Galway called Beechlawn. It is mostly an intro to their growth as a business. they held a farm walk last Saturday - details on the next one is at the end of this article.Pictured on the right are the good folk from beechlawn: Una, Padraig and their two kids, Roisin and Maebh.
In the Irish Examiner next week (thur) I'll have a 'hard look at the economics of thier business' type of article. Links for IOFGA, NOTS and Merf are all over there on the left.
Of all the agricultural sectors that are underperforming in Ireland at present, organic horticulture is one of the most glaring. Rising consumer demand, trainees produced each year, and yet the numbers of full time commercial organic horticulturalists is low.
There are less than 200 licensed by the two certification bodies, and many of these have a mixed enterprise. It has been estimated that there are no more than 60 professional certified organic horticulturalists in Ireland at present.
Beechlawn Farm in east Galway, however, bucks the trend. Una Ni Bhroin and Padraig Fahy manage an ever expanding growing, wholesaling and retailing (box scheme and farmers� markets and wholesaling) enterprise.
Fresh from getting married (to each other) and Padraig�s chairing of IOFGA for two years, they have put another 8 acres into conversion, to add to their present four.
2001 was the year they started growing on half and acre, as fresh faced graduates from the Organic College in Drumcollagher, Limerick.
By 2003, their organic licence was granted, a 2nd polytunnel erected, heated propagator bought, grant received from Galway Rural Development and considerable other equipment was purchased, including a rotovator, tractor, two wheel rotovator, plough, and tiller.
2004 and 2005 saw more polytunnels, their box scheme grow, and more farmers markets be added to their repertoire.
Just last year they erected their latest polytunnel - 10,000 square feet in size � which brings their total to five, at 16,000 sq ft.
They continue to sell direct through a box scheme, and have been instrumental in not just selling at, but opening a range of regional farmers� markets. Their vegetables are now on sale at Loughrea, Athlone, Ballinasloe and Oranmore .There is also a small but increasing wholesale dimension to their business.
The couple have been full time since last year. Indeed the farm and food business has been employing people since 2005. They also take volunteers. Many organic operators do, but the scale at which they do at Beechlawn is quite something: 60 since starting and counting! They�ve had so many, in fact, that they have built a small wooden house on site for the volunteers and farm workers to stay in.
According to Una �Alex our Ukrainian farm worker is a marvellous addition to our workforce - he�s a university student with the Macra na Feirme seasonal horticultural farm worker scheme. He�s with us from March to October and at this stage he�s so well trained in he could nearly run the farm himself�.
�Eva is another gem. Eva is a volunteer who came to help us two months ago. She�s been running market stalls for us all alone giving us the space to catch up with paperwork, orders for seeds, pay the bills and whatever the hidden tasks are�.
She goes on: �We currently also have a Japaneze, German and French volunteers staying at the farm. The three of them are exceptionally helpful. Thank God for the WWOOFERS�Where would be without them?�
WWOOF is a volunteer scheme that enables people to contribute to the various activities on an organic farm.
Another great source of help arrived on their last farm walk, conducted on behalf of the National Organic training Skillsnet (NOTS). This came in the form of Merf, Dr. Charles Merfield, the affable Teagasc organic crop scientist.
�Merf spotted Red Spider Mite on the recent NOTS walk we held, and we had other pest problems too. We dealt with this and other crop issues through products from Fruit Hill Farm organic garden supplies and then a follow up of biological control� according to Una.
Beechlawn (click here for their site) Teagasc national demonstration farm walk for those interested in learning about organic horticulture. It is being held on Wednesday 17th September at 6 pm (admission free)
Friday, August 15, 2008
New look: comments welcome
I like the old scroll style for this blog. (it was called scribe)
It suited my desire to provide decluttered information, and to provide reasonably detailed articles to read. No real bells and whistles. However, the links were just to hard to make out. There were plenty of good links, but it was too much work to find them.
So, I've changed my appearance. I've decluttered even more. It's a bit of a shock to me to look at this, even still, but I'm getting used to it.
I love finding the merit in Luddism:
Ollie
It suited my desire to provide decluttered information, and to provide reasonably detailed articles to read. No real bells and whistles. However, the links were just to hard to make out. There were plenty of good links, but it was too much work to find them.
So, I've changed my appearance. I've decluttered even more. It's a bit of a shock to me to look at this, even still, but I'm getting used to it.
I love finding the merit in Luddism:
- I'm also a vinyl DJ because the sound quality is far far better
- One of my favourite books is called the death of nature by Carolyn Merchant (see the nature and class link over on the left)
- According to Merf, every new car, even the most eco ones, use up about 2 years worth of fuel just getting built (see the merf link over there on the left too - see, they are 'must reads' over there!)
Ollie
Thursday, August 14, 2008
dem links over there
This blog is fairly old skool as regards appearance, style etc. I like to encourage people to make the effort to read. And these days, the web is full of clutter - even just moving your mouse can open sth unexpected, and unwanted.
However, I have recently updated the links you see over there on the left. Yes, they are a wee bit hard to differentiate from each other, but have a look!
Soon, I'll let you know more about the foodie ones, and why there are worth checking out.
But for now, why not try one from each section:
greenme, organic trust, mahdi, bibliocook, love food hate waste, and the idler.
Now that would keep even the most ardent idler busy.
However, I have recently updated the links you see over there on the left. Yes, they are a wee bit hard to differentiate from each other, but have a look!
Soon, I'll let you know more about the foodie ones, and why there are worth checking out.
But for now, why not try one from each section:
greenme, organic trust, mahdi, bibliocook, love food hate waste, and the idler.
Now that would keep even the most ardent idler busy.
Monday, August 11, 2008
organic food is good for you: EU commission
I was at a meeting recently where values were being discussed. This part of the meeting was about the values a particular close knit community should hold. Honest was mentioned as one.
At first, no one seemed to bat an eyelid. Surely honesty is a worthwhile value for any community trying to work together? Then someone who turned out to have a background in law piped up. �Honesty implies dishonesty� he pontificated.
People were somewhat taken aback. How on earth can honesty imply dishonesty> He suggested that honesty should just be presumed, it should be integral to how the group interacts. If the group has to state it, then the group is implying that it is striving towards it, or trying to maintain it. Communication within the group should always be honest, otherwise the group could even be lying about claiming to be honest.
It is for a similar reason that the phrase �Organic farming: good for nature, good for you� has gotten the EU Commission into such hot water. As part of a 21 point Action Plan, the Commission has just launched a campaign to promote organic farming and food amongst the EU�s consumers with that very slogan.
The Commission has a very informative website with an unfortunately long url: here
That slogan �Organic farming: good for nature, good for you� is in fact the first thing to greet the visitor. The Commission is in a bit of pickle, because they have to promote all farming, and making any specifically positive statements about organic farming could be taken as an implication that other farming does not carry these positive attributes.
"We are not favouring organic as an alternative to conventional," according to Michael Mann, agriculture spokesman for the European Commission.
"Merely we are providing the marketing tools to aid progress in the organic industry while helping consumers make their own choices on which products to buy."
The Commission has developed a list of slogans and key messages, which can be used by professionals. These include "Organic farming. The natural choice"; "Organic farming. In nature we trust"; "Organic farming. In goodness we trust"; and "Organic products meet consumer demand for authentic, high quality and tasty food".
Natural, trust, tasty, high quality, authentic, goodness, and even a play on the phrase �in god we trust�. That could certainly be taken as a lot of implications.
The Commission is also introducing a new logo from January 1st, which will become mandatory, though national logos will still be allowable. This is also the date for the new EU organic regulations take over from the one currently in operation, Council Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91 as amended.
Until recently, the Commission was all set to introduce a logo with the word �bio� in the centre of the image, as that word is more commonly used in the EU than organic is, for the certified products in accordance with the regulation 2092/91.
However, this logo was deemed to be too similar to the Aldi logo, and dropped. Needless to say, it would have confused
In
Now, if you are so inclined, you can enter a competition to design the new EU organic logo. Just be careful of what your design might imply.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
a nice cup of tea: Solaris botanicals
Here's an article I had about a great cup of tea I tasted a few weeks back....
(check out their tea bag for restaurants over there - that's quality!)
Maybe it was the blazing heat and sunshine, but the cup of tea I had at Farm Fest 08 was simply stunning. It was no ordinary cup of tea - organic rooibus chocolate chai to be exact, and on a hot hot day it was perfectly refreshing.
I was introduced to the makers of my fine cuppa by an organic gardener studying to be a herbalist. He was doing work experience with Karin Wieland and Jorg Muller, who are both qualified medical herbalists. The couple run the nascent but still multi-award winning Solaris Herbs whole leaf organic tea company.
I have a hunch that tea houses will be the coffee houses of the next ten years, that people will go out for a clear, see through glass pot of loose leaf tea, whiling away the time in conversation in a way similar to pubs, wine bars and cafes today.
If that does happen, then Jorg and Karin will be well ahead of the game. They blend and prepare their own whole leaf teas in
The loose leaf teas themselves, their website, their brochures and their packaging all smack of quality. And they have the awards to prove it. They won three gold stars at the great taste awards 2007, and best grocery product at the SHOP national organic awards 2007. Only 30 out of 5000 entries won gold in the former, and only one product won best grocery product in the latter. So these products really are considered top of the range by their peers in the quality food business.
Their teas manage to combine health, environment and taste - a master blend if ever there was one. All certified organic by the Organic Trust and sourced in a genuinely careful way, the loose leaf dimension is quite deliberate from a health perspective. �whole leaves maintain their optimum levels of antioxidants � machine harvesting and processing oxidates the leaves, thereby reducing the antioxidant value of the tea� according to Jorg.
They specifically blended their herbal teas with different body systems in mind such as nervous system, digestive system and immune system.
The flavours that develop are fuller yet subtle, and without any of the sneaky enhancements other teas in the herbal idiom sometimes have. They pay a fortune for their teas, but don�t carry this over proportionately in their price. While large multinational tea companies can pay less than a euro per kilo when they but their tea by the tonne, �We pay 40euro a kilo for our most expensive type� according to Jorg.
The story of this most expensive of teas, the organic Jasmine Dragon Pearl Tea is exquisite. Spring fresh special grade green tea is sourced from the
This is, unsurprisingly, their most expensive tea, retailing at 9 euros and 55 cent on their website. Any yet you actually get 240 cups out of each one of their cylindrical containers of Dragon Pearls - �that�s 4c per cup of tea!� according to Karin.
Along with speciality green, earl grey, pu-erh, oolong, lapsang souchong and rooibus teas, they also have flowering teas, herbal products and tea accessories.
The flowering teas also tell a great story. According to their literature, �these premium white, tender tea buds are Jasmine scented and hand sewn into flower buds with cotton thread by artisans in
For a variety of practical reasons, restaurants prefer teabags to loose leaf teas. With this in mind, Jorg and Karin have come up with a delightful display box and unique bags for the individual teas. This �100% biodegradable silken tea bag range� comes in a presentation box containing 5 certified organic, 1st flush, speciality whole-leaf teas ranging from Herbal Tea blends to Green Teas, and Black Teas.
Right, I�m parched. I�m off to make myself a cup of that organic rioobus chai.
For more, (p) 091 586443 or just click here
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