I’m about to run out of paper bags, and in ordering some more from Vegware, it occurred to me that I tend to make choices with care for the environment in mind and that I should let you know about this. So here is a braindump of all the aspects of my business which help make a difference.
- Energy – we buy green electricity from So Energy, so the electricity comes from renewables. That’s the oven sorted.
- Hot water – our water comes from a biomass boiler, so although there is an issue with particulates, the energy itself is renewable and carbon neutral. I use environmentally friendly washing up liquid and detergent.
- Cleaning – I clean the oven with bicarbonate of soda and vinegar, so no nasty chemicals going down the drain or on the oven.
- Flours – I use stoneground, organic flours either from Doves Farm or the watermill at Little Salkeld. Organic farming protects the soil and encourages biodiversity.
- Ingredients -I source most of my ingredients from Suma, a co-operative based in Leeds, and my deliveries come once a month or so. This saves on multiple trips to the supermarket. I try to buy fair-trade, so the sugar is fairtrade.
- Packaging – the bread you buy comes in recycled paper bags unless it is the rye bread. I have found that if the rye bread isn’t in plastic the crust becomes rock hard and unpleasant. This is an issue, but it is the only single-use plastic that this business uses.
- Bags – I have considered getting some swanky cloth bags printed with my logo on, but I simply couldn’t justify the cost, and I have decided to carry on reusing the many cloth bags that we as a family have accumulated over the years. I hope you don’t mind. I’d rather reuse these than buy new.
- Real bread – the bread I bake uses simple, whole ingredients with no additives. I am putting money in the pockets of producers and co-operatives, not food chemical manufacturers and food factories.
If any of you are interested in real food, I can recommend a couple of writers to look out for. Joanna Blythman is brilliant. I’ve nicked this image from her Twitter feed, and it sums up my attitude to food.
Bread by Sarah 