A Change of Perspective

I can almost remember the date that the scales fell from my eyes.

I was doing my weekly food shop at a local supermarket, checking the ingredients on a label to ensure that there were no chemicals in the item when I looked up and suddenly realised that most of the food aisles were surplus to requirements. We don't need acres of processed food, oceans of fizzy drinks or mountain of snacks.

All we require are fruit, pulses, vegetables, meat/poultry, fish, baking ingredients and dairy.

 Most of the cleaning products and cosmetic items are clearly over supplied, too. I mean, how many different types of washing up liquid or foundation do we really need?

Once I'd started this line of thought, it galloped away leading me to the (almost) inevitable realisation that the reason our supermarkets are full of unnecessary supplies is down to profit, not need.

There was nothing wrong with the old fashioned grocery stores, where flour came in sacks, tea in chests, cheese in massive wheels and customers brought their own baskets and (often) containers to refill.

What sparked the change? Need? I can (just about!) remember when shops were shut on Sundays and Bank Holidays; when ready made lasagne was a frozen novelty (even if it did taste of cardboard) and when having a roast on Sunday meant that you'd be having several meals from it over the course of the following week.

Is it that we are financially richer than in the 1960's/1970's? I don't think so.

Is it that we are poorer in time than 50 years ago? With less time to prepare fresh food and to clean our houses? Little occasion to consider the true impact of our shopping choices on ourselves, food producers and the wider environment?

It's hard, isn't it? Acknowledging what's going wrong, especially when you realise that you are part of it - whether unwittingly or not.