I rather dozily went to Tesco this morning to pick up some cat food for Wotsit and a few other things which I dimly remembered as being on a list I'd forgotten. I'm not sure whether celery was or was not on that list, but I figured I wanted some, approached the vegetable section and... what the hell is going on... the celery is not in its usual plastic bag. The celery is bloody loose!
At the time, I thought little of this packaging error, but a bit later I realised what was going on: that Tesco had, as Sam Wollaston might say, only gone and got ethical with their celery. It struck me that my reaction as a consumer was emblematic of how hard it is for supermarkets and producers more generally to change their habits in the face of the incredible potential resistance from consumers who are so used to things being the way they are. Tesco's celery decision also made me think about my own food-buying habits in a way that no Guardian article or trendy organic grocery had ever done, because it made me wonder how many changes I ought to make in my own buying habits. I mean I smugly shop in street markets for fruit and veg, but realistically a lot of that produce is flown in, and I buy it there because it's cheaper than in supermarkets and I like tha banter of the market. I enjoy fruit and vegetable in season, but then I enjoy plenty which are damn well out of season. I like going to places like Konstam which source their products from within the M25, but I'm not averse to a McFlurry every now and then. All of which is to say, just how much of an ethical push should I make with regard to food, given that Tesco is making an effort and food (after rent) makes up the biggest part of my monthly budget.
Does it make sense to continue in a rough and ready fashion or is this the kind of area where it would be worth setting oneself limits in terms of the non-seasonal, non-local produce one buys? After all, London is full of great food entrepreneurs who are trying to push consumers in ethical directions and there'd be a lot of fun on a journey towards this goal. Yet, there's also a little niggling thought in my mind as to what on earth we mean by "ethical" food. I guess I do want to support people who grow and make things in non-harmful ways, who treat their staff justly, but I also want to support my man in Pearl kebab takeaway who I really like, whose chips are the best, and who lets me off with paying less if I don't have the right change, and I pay him back that time. It seems to me there's something pretty good about that food relationship yet I feel it falls outside our general idea of what ethical eating is all about. Also, I can't see myself going organic because it's pricier and I guess I have a slight residual suspicion of the idea of wholly moving in that direction.
