Case Studies
To illustrate the value of buying local we conducted an experiment. I saw an article in the Evening Standard recently where the reporter directly compared a locally sourced shopping basket with exactly the same supermarket products. We are going to recreate this experiment.
We decided that the easiest way to compare meat price was to get a selection and that meant a mixed grill for the boys in the office. We chose a variety of meats and cooked the lot.
So what did we get for the money? The mixed grill was for 4 people so 4 steaks, 4 pork chops, 4 or 5 pieces of kidney and the same of liver, 8 sausages and 4 slices of black pudding. This all came to £14 from Southall's in Great Barford, just down the road.
I think the best way to compare with various supermarkets is online so we used "virtual" shopping baskets to compare prices. The total at Tesco came to £16.55 and Sainsburys was £15.60. I have priced products such as barbeque steaks from the supermarket and the butchers' version to make the best comparison. What I think this shows is that for one it is NOT more expensive to go to a butchers and buy 'free range' meat. It also has to be taken into account that the meat from the butchers is more accountable and better produced so even if the price is similar the supermarket products are inferior. One example is that we could have priced meat at the supermarkets of 'similar' quality but 4 organic pork chops were £11 on their own and you wouldn't have believed me if the supermarket bill was £40 but it could easily have been.
Try it for yourself if you are sceptical. Find a local butchers on LocalPork and buy what you would from the supermarket. See if it is much more expensive and see if it doesn't taste better. Tell the butcher what you are doing and challenge him or her to better the supermarket I bet they will be able to and enjoy proving it to you.