Eco audit: cucina povera or using things up

I like leftovers.  I particularly like leftovers when other people come over and bring food with them.  Unplanned leftovers – and the planning then of what to do with them – is a treat for the food mind as well as the body. I’m trying to remember what leftovers were like when I was growing …

Eco audit: buying containers that can be reused

We have a friend whose mum would never ‘throw away’ a jar, all year – because they were all needed for the annual jam making. Containers were not just for one use – they were for multiple. And preserving makes a virtue out of this. So what do you do when you’re in the supermarket, …

Eco audit: going against the dominant food culture

There’s nothing like Not Eating the Same as Others to make you stand out.  It doesn’t seem to matter what your difference is.  It gets trickier.  Sometimes you are seen as being Difficult. In your teens, it is important to find a few ways to be different from your family.  To embrace causes.  To have …

Eco audit: buying fresh from farmers

Childhood is not complete without a little pick-your-own strawberry activity.  (And of course eating, while picking.) I don’t know that my parents were choosing to do it for ‘support the farmers’ reasons.  I think we did it because it was fun, because the fruit was so fresh, and because it made a family outing out …