Bright Wings

Wairarapa Farmers' Market: what's on this week

Fishy Thingz are back tomorrow with their delicious smoked fish cakes, seafood mornays and tasty hot potato sticks. However, it might be a little quieter this week as Gay has lost her voice. I'm sure it'll take more than that to keep her down!

The newest product from Martinborough Manner - spiced plum and lime chutney - is going to require some self control - you can eat it, just not quite yet. It will be ready in time for Christmas eating, whether for yourself or as a gift and is perfect for serving with ham, turkey, chicken as well as with cheese.

Martinborough Manner will also have more of their very popular lemon honey baked goods – buy to eat at the market or to take away and enjoy later.

Sadly the unfriendly weather has meant the good folk at Splashzone aren't able to bring us fish this week.

As always Wai Ohu and Wairarapa Eco Farms will be offering loads of fresh, seasonal veges to inspire your creativity – all organic and pesticide free.

The Masterton Folk Club will be doing their best to keep our spirits up tomorrow with their cheery ambience.

Food Inc, the movie

There are only a few days left to get tickets for this important film. You can get tickets from John at the market tomorrow or from Regent 3 directly. Film info is here.

Film Inc. Wednesday,  October 14, 8:30pm
at Regent 3 - keep the date free

Consumer supermarket price survey disappointing

As a keen observer of supermarket prices and marketing techniques, I was interested in the results of Consumer NZ's supermarket pricing survey.

I assumed that Consumer would base its survey around items that a sensible family would purchase to put together inexpensive, nutritrious meals. I was wrong. The survey was based around the top 10 selling supermarket items.

• bread (the leader in value and in the number of packs sold)
• milk
• biscuits
• fizzy drink
• snacks
• cheese
• cat food
• butter

I would argue that the items I have shown in red are products that should be regarded as treats, rather than part of a staple family diet. Having a cat is discretionary and should not be included in a pricing study either.

How about some basic items which can be used as the foundation of a meal or school lunches, such as

• pasta, macaroni, etc
• inexpensive pasta sauce
• baked beans
• tinned salmon (a 400g tin easily feeds four for about $2.50)
• eggs

Both of the major supermarket chains (Foodstuffs: Pak'n Save, New World); Progressive Enterprises: Countdown, Woolworths, Foodtown) offer house brands.  Foodstuffs supermarkets have "Budget" brand and Progressive Enterprises "Home Brand" products which are considerably cheaper and have not necessarily been included in this survey as survey shoppers were instructed to buy a particular brand.

I always study the weekly supermarket catalogues carefully.  There is a heavy focus on processed food, soft drink, confectionary, wine and beer in these catalogues because this is where the supermarkets are making their money. 

This week's catalogues feature heavily discounted soft drink. I understand soft drink is the number one selling supermarket product and dietitians tell me they often have to try and wean people off drinking three 2 litre bottles a day!

Note: To view the full Consumer report you'll need to subscribe.

Easy fruit loaf recipe

Barm Brack
This is an excellent loaf recipe for using up odds and ends of dried fruit you have in the cupboard and is very quick and simple to make.

500 gms mixed dried fruit (dates, currants, raisins, sultanas, cake fruit mix)
1 cup tea (put teabag in cup and add boiling water)
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups self-raising flour
1 egg

Soak fruit with sugar in the tea, ideally overnight, but for at least a couple of hours.

Add flour and well-beaten egg to fruit mixture and place in well-greased loaf tin. Bake at 150⁰C for two hours. Serve in slices, buttered if desired.

Loud music leads to more drinking

Loud music played in bars appears to encourage drinking according to the results of a study published on Psyblog.

As the music volume increases (as a deliberate strategy by bar owners to increase consumption) it becomes more and more difficult to carry on a conversation. People give up talking and get busy drinking instead.

Because everyone is shouting, the bar becomes even noisier and soon people start to give up trying to communicate and focus on their drinking, meaning more trips to the bar, and more regrets in the morning.

Of course this is exactly what bar owners are hoping for. People sitting around quietly nursing their drinks for hours are no good for profits. Talkers aren't the best drinkers. At least that is the received wisdom in the industry. And this received wisdom turns out to be accurate according to field studies conducted in French bars by Professor Nicolas Guegen and colleagues.

Stuff's feature, Young, at risk and out of it confirms the disturbing and increasing binge drinking problem among young people. 

Research shows that 70 percent of these young people are drinking in bars. Would controlling the decible rating of music in these bars help reduce this drinking?  Or would those hellbent on self-destruction simply drink elsewhere?

Milk too dear

There is much debate about milk being more expensive than soft drinks and the implications for health and welfare.

Richard Long reminds us about the school milk scheme, set up to ensure even the most deprived children had a nourishing drink at morning break.

My recall isn't one of enjoying a nourishing drink, rather more enduring revolting, warm, sometimes curdled milk. Opting out wasn't an option. The shed in which the crates of half-pint bottles was stored was always optimally sited to take full advantage of the morning sunshine, to ensure the milk was at least tepid by morning tea time.

When we grew up there were two drinks available: water or milk. Soft drinks were reserved for special treats, such as birthday parties.  Milk (in bottles) was supplied by town milk supplying dairy farmers, cost roughly 5 cents a bottle, and was delivered by the milkman.

Now we have the situation of mothers eschewing milk for their children in favour of cheaper soft drinks.  This reflects ignorance of the pernicious effects of wholesale consumption of softdrinks and resultant addiction to sugar, and is unfortunate testimony to the outstanding marketing of such products, particularly in supermarkets.

Richard Long suggests that food stamps might be the answer to getting parents to buy nourishing food, instead of sending the kids to school with a fizzy drink and chippies.  I'm not too sure about that.

Couldn't we start by encouraging kids to drink plain old water?  And supporting and extending breakfast at school schemes to ensure kids at least start the day with an adequate level of nutrition.

***

Frank Newman of Living off the smell of an oily rag has researched the price of milk and finds wide variation in milk price across the country. The Milk Report makes interesting reading.

Time for tea

Over the last 30 years tea drinking in New Zealand has moved from a standard, gumboot brew you could stand a spoon up in, to being a treat for connoisseurs.

I've recently discovered the t leaf T range of teas and infusions - and their wonderful shop - on a visit to Wellington.  You may have come across a small selection of their teas at some Wairarapa cafes.

There is a mind-boggling selection to choose from (about 120), under the following categories:

• Black tea blends - Assam, Ceylon, Sri Lankan, Darjeeling varieties
• Flavoured black teas - includes Chai, China Rose (China black tea, flavoured with rose), Earl Grey Excelsior (I've tried this - it's outstanding)
• Chinese black teas
• Chinese oolong teas 
• Formosa oolong teas  
• Green teas 
• Flavoured green teas - I've tried Tokyo Lime and Fabulous Feijoa.  The latter, which has rose petals and tiny, freeze-dried pieces of feijoa in it - is my current favourite. 
• Japanese green teas 
• White teas - haven't tried these yet but, the fact sheet points to health-giving properties
• Blooming teas - jasmine, carnation 
• Fruit tisanes (all caffeine free)  
• Yerba mate 
• Herbal tisanes (caffeine free) - a wide variety, including Kawakawa Fire (kawakawa blended with lemongrass and ginger.  I've tried Restful - peach flavoured blend of chamomile, lavender, vervain and rose buds. 
• Rooibos, a South African tea with health-giving properties  

If you're visiting Wellington, the t leaf T shop is in the Midland Park complex in Lambton Quay (adjoining Astoria), or order online from their website, t leaf T 

They have various sampler packs available for you to try and make a great, thoughtful gift.