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Interesting conversation with neighbours


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Well, there I was admiring my neighbours new veranda, he an engineer at the waterworks, she a nurse, when we got to talking about food prices and their daughter. It seems that she, like many other French students and youngsters are finding it virtually impossible to eat healthily as the price of fresh fruit, veg and fish is now largely beyond their pockets. And, they do not have time to go to markets as they have classes or work, though I am not sure they are cheaper. hence they eat cr** and get fatttttt.

Any thoughts?

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Markets are not cheaper. We use ED's for fruit and veg as its the cheapest and they have a dedicated chap to look after it so its well presented and looks fresh, unlike Champion's (sorry Carrefor or whatever they are called now) who seem to charge a lot more for the same thing and let it rot on the shelf. A French guest told me that officially France is now the second most expensive country in the world in which to live, I have no idea if that is true but it feels like it. My English friend, who has short arms and deep pockets, tells me thats rubbish "where can you get pork at 2:30 a kilo", where indeed outside of the 'pork fest' held twice a year where we all by a shed load of pork chops etc and stuff them in the freezer.

The thing with the fruit and veg is that as soon as French varieties are available that's all you can buy in the shop, the rest of the time down here it's Spanish yet its double or even treble what you pay in Spain, one reason we are thinking of moving further south, shop in Spain, its a lot cheaper. The other thig is quality, I am sorry its not good, take beef for example, only fit for retreading lorry tyres. I can honestly say that in my part of France there is only one place to get a decent steak. Roast beef, well, we have bought supermarket, recommended and the best shop in the village. We cooked it umpteen different ways and let it 'hang' etc, etc, still comes out as old show level. It's no wonder the UK is now officially the home of Haute Cuisine with more Michelin chefs than France.

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Naturally enough as the UK is so much cheaper, it was announced that our food prices are set to rise here in the UK. Lidl and Aldi get my custom for fruit and veg as the quality is good and so many items are excellent value I bring a lot of food with me when I travel over to France.
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[quote user="Quillan"]

unlike Champion's (sorry Carrefor or whatever they are called now) who seem to charge a lot more for the same thing and let it rot on the shelf. [/quote]

Know just what you mean, our local Champion has just been 're-branded' and it's made no difference to the quality of the veg, it's apalling, little choice and poor quality - they had red peppers in there a few days ago and they were all mouldy - I went through the lot of them and all were rotten.  We're clearing more of the woods to expand the potager, I know the arguments about time/costs for gyo veg but my time is my own now so as far as I'm concerned, I'll continue to gyo for as long as I can.

We don't eat red meat at all so can't comment on  the beef or other prices but even our staple diet of fish is starting to get more expensive, hence visits to the local markets where we bulk buy now, mainly for the special offers.  Even the price of chicken is going up too!

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On our annual family holidays to Brittany,  I always notice the seemingly vast quantities of fish and seafood on sale in the supermarkets. I know that 'the fishing' is big in Brittany, but I often wonder if the stocks in the stores is all sold. There is often a lot of stock left at closing time as well.  Does seem expensive as well. 
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On our annual family holidays to Brittany,  I have often noticed the large quantities of fish and seafood on sale in the supermarkets. I know that 'the fishing' is big in Brittany, but I do wonder if all the stock gets sold. There is often a lot left at closing time as well. Does seem expensive as well.
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We have noticed the rise in prices here in 56 since we arrived a year ago.I agree about the veg,the quality is not good.Is France really the second most expensive?It was cheap at one time as we all know.
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Well Wooly I have enjoyed reading your postings re weight loss and your new food regime, I couldnt hep but be jealous and think, one day I will once again be able to afford to eat properly.

You see during the time that you have been flourishing I have had to cut back on the only expenditure left with anything to cut away, namely food. Until now I have eaten well in France but at a price, now I am ashamed to say that I am malbouffé and the weight is steadily going back on, sadly or perhaps it should be thankfully there arent that many savings to be made in France compared to the UK where the difference is dramatic. On my last trip on any given day either Tesco or Asda were doing an Indian or Chinese meal for two for £3, its utter processed crap but the real killer is (pun unintended) that there is so much that it lasts me for 4 meals.

Only last night I had to throw away nearly all the veg from my fridge, I have to carefully find the least pourri amongst the rotting offerings and if I can afford to buy it then I have to use it straightaway.

Bad eating habits start when we leave home and have the least money to spend on food and often other less noble priorities, do French universitie students have access to proper food at a easonable price on campus Wooly?

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Was it really ever cheap or was it that the exchange rate made it seem so? I remember when I started coming to France back in 1961 after returning from Africa, that is was certainly regarded as expensive then expensive then, particularly meat.

The next question though, is why. Is because of profiteering in the supply chain, is it because of deliberate lack of competition and price fixing, inefficiency in production, massivelt higher production costs than anywhere else or a cultural thing that fresh food is traditionally just expensive as a part of the overall family budget? I keep trying to find an answer but havent yet found a simple one.

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Question, any thoughts? Well reading these comments it sounds like France is going  to be empty pretty soon, in fact it might be time to sell up and move to India or somewhere else cheap. What is this British obsession with prices? Please, if the best you want out of life is 2 for 1 Tesco's ready made curries why do you bother to cross the channel at all? [:D] 
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Chancer, I am very careful about what I buy but the rise in costs is still noticeable. I have cut certain types of meat from my diet through choice as well as almost all processed foods, most dairy and all booze except a couple of bottles of wine per week which does help and only buy fresh fruit and veg that seem to be reasonably priced, regardless of origin. Plus a bit of bulk buying for the freezer. My 'extravagance' is fish, though there I buy according to the promo and also cheap, healthy fish such as mackerel.

Another trick I have picked up is that I can buy lower category soft fruit and some veg which is cheaper and make smoothies with it which I adore.

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Years ago I used to think it important to support the village shops. I couild not understand why the Dutch holiday makers would cart all the food they might need with them  as I discovered many do.   I have watched the village shops go out of business mainly by retiement of ownerrs and no younger people wanting to take over ...Support grew for the big supermarkets that have moved into the area because their prices were cheaper .. Now the big supermarkets are not so cheap and I have followed the Dutch in carting some frozen food to France for my stays and feel a bit guilty in doling it .. The local talk now is all about food prices... As fas as the South Vendee is concerned only a couple of weeks ago my neighbour told me she is now going inland to the Supermarket as prices on the coast are 10 to 20% dearer .. She is right its worth driving 10 or 15  k's inland for a weeks food shop.
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[quote user="NickP"]Question, any thoughts? Well reading these comments it sounds like France is going  to be empty pretty soon, in fact it might be time to sell up and move to India or somewhere else cheap. What is this British obsession with prices? Please, if the best you want out of life is 2 for 1 Tesco's ready made curries why do you bother to cross the channel at all? [:D] [/quote]

Well, Nick, it is not just a British obsession, believe me. Most French are hurting because of the price rises - witness the numbers cutting back on holidays and activities this summer. 

And I have not been to a Tesco for 15 plus years and have only been to a Waitrose once in ten years. However, I do like to have a standard of living which permits choices and this is increasingly under threat in many ways- for example, I can no longer afford, at the same time, to finish tidying up my house, do a lot of miles in the camping car and give my daughters little presents.

Choices have to be made which did not have to be a few years ago, and the prices of fresh food are beyond the pale sometimes - eg, rhubarb was over €4 a kilo at one time.

Fredo, couldn't agree more.

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I don't see the connection between having a limited food budget and getting fat. Except for Chancer's 3€ precooked meal. (yuk.)

The chinese don't spend much on food, or poor Indians, and they're usually thin. So why do poor westerners get fat?

How do you explain it?

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Funny enough Frederick down here its noticeably cheaper down at the coast but I think thats because its near to Spain, about 30 minutes till you hit the big supermarkets there so perhaps they have to be more competitive. I think its good that the supermarkets support French farmers but its a shame they don't support the French consumer. I understand from a French guest last year who worked in the head office of Casino that only 'dry' goods (thats packets and tins) are centrally distributed, the rest are sourced locally. I know our meat in both our supermarkets comes from local sources as they have a card up giving the name of the animal etc (today you are eating Beatrice from Pierre's farm and slaughtered at Castres). Another thing he told me is that they can't do 'price loss' items, its illegal apparently plus watch out for the packets that give 20% more against the price per kilo, its often a scam of some sort.
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Having lived in HK for a while, I can tell you that the Chinese do spend a lot of their income on food and are often fat. In China itself there is a major obesity problem.

Limited food budget means often buying unhealthy food. Poor Westerners eat cheap food, say the cheapest ranges offered by the supermarkets which are often packed with sugar and salt and other sh** that I wouldn't even give to my dogs, knowingly anway.

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[quote user="woolybanana"]

[quote user="NickP"]Question, any thoughts? Well reading these comments it sounds like France is going  to be empty pretty soon, in fact it might be time to sell up and move to India or somewhere else cheap. What is this British obsession with prices? Please, if the best you want out of life is 2 for 1 Tesco's ready made curries why do you bother to cross the channel at all? [:D] [/quote]

Well, Nick, it is not just a British obsession, believe me. Most French are hurting because of the price rises - witness the numbers cutting back on holidays and activities this summer

And I have not been to a Tesco for 15 plus years and have only been to a Waitrose once in ten years. However, I do like to have a standard of living which permits choices and this is increasingly under threat in many ways- for example, I can no longer afford, at the same time, to finish tidying up my house, do a lot of miles in the camping car and give my daughters little presents.

Choices have to be made which did not have to be a few years ago, and the prices of fresh food are beyond the pale sometimes - eg, rhubarb was over €4 a kilo at one time.

Fredo, couldn't agree more.

[/quote]

I can vouch for that comment, French bookings well, I mean well, down this year as are many of the other nationalities. Lot of Dutch and Belgian's around though thankfully.

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I noticed the prices last year - especially when the Euro was at Parity. I am shocked at the prices here in France.

When we moved to France in 2000 - Franc existed, food and clothing was much cheaper.

Now a cucumber costs 1.59!!

Charentaise Melons are 3.50 when I can buy one back in the UK for 2.50 or less!

As for meat, its outrageously priced! I have asked my local French amies where they buy their meat and they say it is the same everywhere, they just buy less - they cannot afford it.

The fresh veg still tastes delightful though!
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[quote user="woolybanana"]

Well, there I was admiring my neighbours new veranda, he an engineer at the waterworks, she a nurse, when we got to talking about food prices and their daughter. It seems that she, like many other French students and youngsters are finding it virtually impossible to eat healthily as the price of fresh fruit, veg and fish is now largely beyond their pockets. And, they do not have time to go to markets as they have classes or work, though I am not sure they are cheaper. hence they eat cr** and get fatttttt.

Any thoughts?

[/quote]

To get back to the original post.  Is it really that they can't afford healthy food, or is it just facility?  The few youngsters I have known just seem to live with a freezer and a microwave.  That seems to be about the limit of their culinary knowledge.

 

Wooly, what are smoothies?

 

Yes, the British do have an obsession with prices and always have.  Anything you talk about they have to say how much it cost, where you can get it cheaper, etc.  The French are struggling the same with prices, but they don't go on about it so much.   [geek]

 

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And buying/eating less meat is actually much healthier. Prices here for meat (Switzerland) are astronomical - so we now eat much less of it- and a lot more fruit and veg- often bought in France as we are so close. We use Dia, and it's a great small spupermarket- always great prices and very well presented. Meat good too - although I agree that beef is not anywhere near UK quality. When we go to England - a rib roast is such a treat, or a great steak. If you buy fruit and veg IN SEASON - it is very good value still I think. Now we are having a ball with nectarines (brugnons) apricots and cherries. Also we buy veg which are cheap here, but not often used in UK, like chicory, and fennelwhich we have in salads or 'au gratin' with ham. Ratatouille veg are now very good value. We eat rice, bulgur, couscous, which are all very cheap - and add small portions of lentils to things like Bolognese, as well as other veg - much tastier, cheaper and more healthy. With very little effort and expertise  it is not difficult to produce healthy and very reasonably priced food in France. Honest. 2 for 1 options at places like Tesco are very difficult to resist and end up in tons of food thrown away, chickens and all - as people to not get organised to freeze or cook and freeze. God knows what a life and death chickens sold at 2 large for £5.00 must have had. I'd rather buy a good poulet fermier/plein air- and make sure I use every scrap. Roast on Sunday, fricassée with veg and mshrooms on Monday, then boil carcass with veg for risotto on Tuesday + great taste. I'm sure it is actually cheaper in the end.

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Just adding my comments though there's nothing that hasn't already been said.

Yes, Deby, the Charentais melons are a disgraceful price considering that they are grown right here on our doorstep and they are not a crop that needs intensive looking after or anything like that.

Fresh fruit and veg?  Yes, a lot of it imported from Holland and Spain and not particularly appetising to look at.

OH doesn't eat meat and I used to buy a lot of fish but nowadays (don't know if it's my imagination), the fish looks "tired" on the supermarket counters and is so expensive on market stalls that you feel tempted to ask whether they have gold nuggets put into the stomachs when they vident the fish.

Meat, thank goodness, I no longer enjoy that so much.  Chicken is, as I think I have posted on a recent thread, about 7 to 8 euros a kilo for free-range.

So.....what do we eat?  Well, still eat veg.  Unfortunately, we have very poor ground and do not want to use manure as we have a hyperactive dog who loves digging.  Just the few tomato and courgette plants.

Then, I use a lot of pulses and make quite a mean chestnut and lentil burger.  We have walnuts from our garden and I manage to use walnuts in lots of recipes.

My weight is down but alas the waist measurement is not!  Due to my diet?  Don't know but I like to blame my age....at least there's no argument with that!

And I support what Wooly says about the Chinese and Indians and, incidentally Korean teenagers.  I know lots of fat Chinese and Indians who suffer from diabetes and I have met lots of Korean teenagers who are like little walking lumps of lard who wear American baseball caps and baggy shorts a la Pete Sampras (Pete Sampras, qui est-ce?)

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In the UK I used to help with an assocs that helped young mums with young children how to budget, buy good, healthy cheap food and cook it- it made a huge difference, as they just didn't have a clue how easy and cheap good food can be. And at my school, I used to organise cooking sessions for our young vegetarians - as their idea of being veggie was to eat chips and pizzas- and many had a weight problem. I taught the how to get enough protein, vitamins, etc - using pulses and tofu (yes, I know, tofu can be very bland - but great to make burgers mixed with nuts, pulses and spices). Those kids were often not getting any proper nutrients, many at risk of developing osteoporosis, etc. It also led to the cantine offering more suitable foods for them.

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Thank you for the smoothies Wooly.

Yesterday evening at the supermarket there was one packet of what they call meat for animals left.  I don't usually buy it as it is only what years ago the butcher would give you as rognures (scraps) for your dog.  Anyway, as it was the last packet I took it, 3 euros a kilo (or 2.98 to be exact! [:D] ).  J-P was carrying on about it as he couldn't even cut it, all tendons and stuff.   [6]

I said well "people are buying it as it was the last one" and he said "at the moment there are some who are probably buying it for themselves!".

 

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