Cat(h) wrote:
To a fair extent, I agree with you. However, I have lived away from
that situation for nearly 20 years, and where I live, it is *extremely*
difficult to get locally produced goods. I have tried repeatedly to
sign up for veg box schemes, only to find that no-one could guarantee
me regular deliveries. The costs were also pretty horrendous.

Do you have a van coming by you once a week? My friend who leaves in
Veuil, (middle of absolutely nowhere), gets the bread van twice a week,
meat once a week. The veg she grows herself and shares with other local
farmers.

I had signed to an organic home delivery, a scheme offering boxes from
£5 to £15. The first time I got 60% oignons roll eyes! I mentioned
it and they exclaimed that it's because they thought I was french lol!!
Still, I continued for a while, just so that I would help them at the
beginning of their venture. I stopped eventually fed up by the random
produces. I couldn't keep up with so many oignons!

I'm with you on teh above. But as I said, I now find myself in a
society where weekly markets are few and far between and those which do
exist are a recent yuppy innovation - I'm not joking - where an
*organic* chicken of medium weight, say 1.5kg, can set you back as much
as €15,

This is madness - I would however put money for a chicken, but £6 is
my limit - once a week chicken though. I've got a friend who started
selling fruits and veg on the high street from a caravan. He sells 6
froots or 6 vegs for £1. I think that's pretty good and you find
students munching on raw carrots when they pass by.

locally produced jars of jam sell for upwards of €4 for 250
gr, and there is simply not enough variety to purchase most of one's
food needs.

I've decided to do more jam this year. There's lots of trees on our
allotments which fruits just fell and nobody seems to care. I'll use
them )

All in all, as I said, in the society in which I operate, I can find
very little wrong with the Lidl model.
But at this stage, I am so far off topic that I deserve a drastic rap
on the knuckles.
I'll shut up now :-)

Don't. It's nice to find out how the others live )