Green food

Peanut

Any chance of encouraging more veggie places to open now that we have a Green tinged government?

I'm not suggesting that they are anti-meat so to speak, but, for example Cornucopia in Dublin got planning permission to expand their premises through a customer petition and help from political sources.

Even if the availabilty of good quality, reasonably priced food was encouraged (not necessarily veg.), then I think that benefits everyone.

Or would it be an unfair distortion of the market?

..But perhaps some help is needed, considering operating expenses these days, do the large fastfood chains have an unfair advantage?

..and maybe it's too difficult to get an agreed definition of 'healthy' food anyway? (cut out hydrogenated fats for a start?)

..but then again, it's recognised that obesity is a major problem in society, and will create huge strains in the future on our health services etc.
No doubt a large part of this is down to bad food choices, and surely it's better to help create a situation where more choice is available? (Not necessarily like the UK school dinners thing where chips etc. are being sneaked into school due to no choice being given.)

What do you think...




(edit: just saw this. "The Department of Agriculture and Food should review policies in partnership with other government departments to promote access to healthy food. Such policies should encompass positive discrimination in the provision of grants and funding to local industry in favour of healthy products."

But was any of it actually implemented?
If it was, then I don't really see any siginifcant change...)

Mentalmiss

I agree but what can we as consumers do other than support the places that give us that choice as much as we can.
I decided long ago that I was prepared to pay more for my organic fruit and veg in an organic shop than in the chains just to support them so that they stay there and give me the choice that I want.

Slaphead07

Mentalmiss wrote:

I agree but what can we as consumers do other than support the places that give us that choice as much as we can.

Spot on. The State (in the broadest meaning of the word) can encourage healthier eating which in turn would lead to more bums on seats in veggie restaurants but there's absolutely no point in opening veggie restaurants unless people will eat there. The free market, for all it's faults, is the final decider of how many of these eateries survive and sadly there aren't a lot, or perhaps enough, veggie eateries around. If there was a thriving market for veggie meals I wouldn't be eating a plate of soggy vegetables at business lunches. We need to educate before we simply open more veggie restaurants.

Peter Collins

What's not eating meat got to do with being "green"?

I don't see any connection.

Peanut

Slaphead07 wrote:

The free market, for all it's faults, is the final decider of how many of these eateries survive ...

I'm not suggesting that the free market ideal be abandoned, but it's questionable to think whether everything should be decided by market forces.

If this was the case, then we would have no transport infrastructure or broadband in rural areas for example (oh.. wait a minute.. :-p)

These are areas of national importance. Surely, "you are what you eat", and giving incentives for making higher-quality food can't be such a bad thing?
The market will still decide in the end, but it may have been helped by an initial nudge.

The report from the Taskforce on Obesity had already recommended this (link at end of first post), but it just seems like nothing has been done about it in reality.

Slaphead07 wrote:

We need to educate before we simply open more veggie restaurants.

Chicken and egg situation though?
I can't blame people being turned off veg. in this country when all they have are your soggy carrots and potatoes!

By the way, I am not specifically referring to vegetarian food, but "better" food in general - I'm only mentioning veg. places because I think it's fair to say that they tend to be more focused on this than meat-eating establishments.

Peter Collins wrote:

What's not eating meat got to do with being "green"?

I don't see any connection.

Never heard of the lentil brigade then? :rolleyes:
Joking aside, I would think that "healthy" food is considered a green theme..
But you're right, maybe I should have posted this in Food & Drink..

Mentalmiss

Peter Collins wrote:

What's not eating meat got to do with being "green"?

I don't see any connection.

Airline travel accounts for 2% of the greenhouse gasses. Flatulance from cattle accounts for 8%.
If you check on the amount of water used to produce a pound of meat compared to a pound of any other food and the amount of land used then the figures are even worse.
Need I say more