In the news instead of behind it

This week I found out what it’s like to be on the other side of the fence when I was interviewed for Hold The Front Page news website about my year without supermarkets.

Shopping locally at Derby's Eagle Market

I’m used to asking the questions so it felt a little odd to be the one under scrutiny. I immediately fell into talking-too-fast mode (definitely shouldn’t do radio!) and waffling on about silly things. Then of course I walked away thinking “damn, I should have said this and that instead”. Tsk. Useless!

I did manage to squeeze in a bit of shameless self publicity though by slipping in the blog web address and a plug for my weekly Food You Can Trust features in the Derby Telegraph.

You can read the story about me on Hold The Front Page here.

One of the most interesting questions Helen, the journalist from HTFP, asked me was whether I think I’ll continue avoiding supermarkets once the year is done.

I’m less than three months into the challenge so it’s early days, but I have to say right now I’ve got absolutely no wish to even set foot inside a Tesco again. Once you get the hang of it, shopping local really is loads better.

You meet some lovely people, you get to buy (and eat!) some lovely food, and you’re supporting your local economy. What’s not to like?

I think the only thing that makes it hard is that the supermarkets are undeniably the most convenient places to shop - both in terms of their almost 24/7 opening hours and the fact that you can get everything you could possibly need (and a whole lot that you don’t need) under one roof.

And I reckon it's this innate laziness in most of us that puts people off breaking the supermarket habit and venturing into their local butcher or greengrocer instead.

All I can say to change people's minds is that once you get into the swing of things, and know what you can get where (and what the opening times for your favourite shops are) then it's really not that difficult, and the benefits do make it worthwhile.