Loose Ends

It’s a shame Thomas Jefferson was caught up in that unnecessary American War of Independence unpleasantness as he would doubtless have opined the price of local produce is eternal vigilance (which it does indeed appear to be) and man’s inalienable rights are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Kent Food at Reasonable Prices (the latter of which seems in some cases impossible).

Anyway, putting that gratuitous regret to one side, time to address two loose ends.

Salt . . . thanks to Suzanne Miles for putting me on to the fact the Sportsman at Seasalter make their own (apparently it was on the telly recently, how zeitgeisty am I!) I called and left a saline message on their voicemail, but, rather discourteously, haven’t rung back to follow that up. Must do some time.

However, it seems all they do is get a bucket of briny and boil it down. Something of a disappointment; we’ve used Maldon sea-salt for some time and I’d fondly imagined its production was along the lines of French vineyards, but with Essex girls wearing a lot of slap and white stilettos trampling on raw salt.

National food chains . . . .some might think it regrettable, but if one object of seeking out and using Kent produce is to support one’s local farmers, growers and foodie firms you are inexorably led to a conclusion that supermarkets have to be included in the equation.

Most of us use supermarkets at some time or another and their influence on the UK food and drink market is undeniably massive. Therefore, if one wishes to help producers one can’t pretend they don’t exist or don’t matter. So, Lesson No. 7 . . . while undoubtedly A Good Thing in a localism sort of way that we should grow our own and buy from local outfits as far as possible, supermarkets need to be brought into the mix. Over the past 10 years or so supermarkets have responded to consumer pressure by, for example, vastly increasing the proportion of free-range or organic eggs they sell. If such pressure can get a desired result, why isn’t there a Kent-wide organisation pressuring supermarkets to ensure their stores in the county are sourced from Kent farms and producers?

Next time, a bit about the delights of Damson Ice Cream – weird, but wonderful.