Thank you to Ella McSweeney from RTE’s Ear to the Ground who posted this link today on twitter.
I have to admit watching it really stopped me in my tracks… so here’s my rant for today!
We grow a lot of our own fruit and vegetables. However, there are some things that we cannot grow here in Ireland. Then there are the ‘lean months’ when all of last year’s crops are almost gone, and the current year’s aren’t ready for harvesting.
So naturally there are times when we have to buy fruit and vegetables. I am one of those people who reads the ‘Country of Origin’ on packaging when shopping…. I know it adds to the time spent shopping, but I do believe we ought to. We try to buy as local as possible, and to consider the ‘carbon footprint’ element when shopping.
Having watched a programme some months back on BBC and I cannot remember the presenter. But the argument was very well put with regard to whether ‘air miles’ should be a consideration when shopping. The argument was that in Holland where there is less sunshine, than say in Spain, more energy, etc. is used to ripen the vegetables indoors – thereby increasing the greenhouse gases, etc.
It also highlighted the reliance of small communities in parts of Africa who have no other source of income other than the sales of their fruit, vegetables or flowers.
Prior to watching the programme I probably would have chosen ‘Holland’ as being nearer (therefore, less air miles) ahead of Spain. So in recent months Spanish grown vegetables have been in our shopping cart!
Watch this http://www.guardian.co.uk/video/embed
I think it will change your mind about buying Spanish.
We have all grown so accustomed to having whatever vegetable or fruit we want, whenever we want. Does anyone else remember when you only had salads in summer? Maybe we should all rethink our shopping habits.
Things are bad here in Ireland, but this is truly disgraceful!
Thank you for reading my rant!
Just an update… grocery shopping over the past 2 days, I had tomatoes, peppers and lemons on my list. Here’s how it went.
Every shop I went to the peppers were from Spain. I finally found some tomatoes from Holland – most were from Spain. Most lemons were also from Spain, but I eventually got some from Turkey. We are doing without the peppers!
Now I know Turkey is an increase in the carbon footprint – but which is better? We’ve decided on the ethical treatment of current humanity (if that makes sense).
So having been to four different shops – we got our Dutch and Turkish fruit in our local Super Valu in Portumna.
Try it yourself….
A Year In Redwood 
[…] Margaret from A Year in Redwood has a bit of a (justified) rant about “salad slaves” in Spain. […]
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How funny videos of the BBC. It is a pure trade war. My English boots are made in the Dominican Republic.Why ? Slave work by hour. The Brits have black workers in Latin America for hardest works, the British will pay 1 US dollar/day by making 25 pairs of hand-stitched boots/day . A worker 50 shoes/day!
I saw it in Spanish television.
Many British manufacturers make their products in China, Vietnam, etc.
The salary…ridiculous. Slaves?
My Japanese watch is manufactured in China.Why? Slave work ?Relocation?
My tv monitor was made in China by Philips. A company of your beloved Holland .
For work purposes I bought Irish products of computing sector.Me glad that multinationals USA can afford to pay you a just salary.
But it´s no fair think that Spain is a hell for foreign workers.We have a lot of unemployed workers. But that is other problem.
Would you like see working conditions in Turkey,in Marroc?Have they a good salary?
Germany floods us of cars, France floods us of butter,cars,a dreadful milk,…Workers of Turkey in Germany,Argelian people look after caws in France…Pakistan people in GB…
Unfortunately there is no fair trade in the world.
Today the first world no needs to capture slaves because European companies are the third world seeking cheap workers.
I’ll have American computer parts make in California, in Ireland or…in India.
And you´ll eat Spanish vegetables manufactured in Spain or in Marroc.
The Spanish farmer isn´t guilty .
The responsible is the system that seeks the cheapest country and the neediest workers. I think so.Ah ,I´m a Spanish farmer and “spanish killer cucumber” was a slamy and dirty trick of German and French Governments for help to your farmers.All is a war trade .
If they do not want my vegetables ,why I have to swallow their cars? Swiss chocolate,British shoes,French perfums…more cheap than ours…It´s possible?Have they slaves too?Is the French perfums piss of caws?.I can Scotch whisky more cheap than a Brit. Have they slaves too?.
I don´t understand that.
We have slaves, piss on the vegetables…and don´t we have horns ?
A bit of fair play ,please.
Poor Europe in the hands of ambitious shopkeepers !
You are of course right about ambitious shopkeepers! It is the large mutlinationals that are controlling everything…. telling farmers when to plant, what to plant, and when to harvest.
However, I still think we can make a difference if each and everyone one of us stops to think about what we are buying and where it has come from. If we all buy our produce from our local farmer and producer it might help make a change!
I recently say grapes in a local shop here from India!!!!!!! Why on earth do we have to have grapes from India? While we can’t grow them here, there are an awful lot of producers a lot closer than that!