At As Nature Intended our suppliers are extremely important to us; without them none of the fantastic organic food we have on our shelves would be available. We select them very carefully in order to ensure that we deliver the highest quality organic products at a reasonable price.
When hand-picking our suppliers, product quality is a primary concern. 95% of the food we sell is organic - that means the products must be certified as organic by a UK certification body such as the Soil Association or Organic Farmers and Growers. We do sell a few non-organic food items - products which are not currently available organically (such as gluten-free flour). However, they are of course natural and GM-free. Should such a product become available organically, it will be replaced by the organic version.
‘Food miles’ are an issue of growing concern in the UK. Writer Felicity Lawrence (‘Not on The Label’, Penguin Books, 2004) estimates that items in one supermarket shopping basket containing a typical range of 20 fresh foods have between them travelled an astonishing 100,000 miles! As Nature Intended always favours organic British produce. We use local suppliers where possible, and 99% of our suppliers are based in the UK. However, one of the main issues lies with fruit and vegetables. Today consumers are used to having a wide variety of produce available to them all year round. 100 years ago apples would have only been available for a couple of months a year and bananas were almost unheard of on supermarket shelves! A wide range of organic produce is on offer at As Nature Intended, and we will always give strong consideration to ‘food miles’ when choosing our stock.
Many of our suppliers are small organic producers who have dedicated their lives to producing excellent quality food using organic methods. Organic food is manufactured and produced in a very traditional way. Animal welfare is a priority; the suppliers that we use at As Nature Intended ensure that their animals spend their lives roaming around fields and are reared without the routine use of drugs, antibiotics and wormers common in intensive livestock farming. They are also reared for approximately twice as long as intensively farmed animals. The use of chemicals and pesticides is severely restricted in all organic farming, and healthy, natural soil is a pre-requisite. Sustainable farming practices are also often implemented.
Our suppliers are committed people, and during the afternoons or at weekends they can often be found in As Nature Intended sampling their products and talking to our customers. As Nature Intended has many organic suppliers; below are links to a few insights into how some of them live and work:
Sheepdrove Farm – Peter Kindersley
You can get more information about companies with whom As Nature does business and recommends in our links section.
If you are a supplier and would like As Nature Intended to look at stocking
your products, please email Caroline Walker on: caroline@asnatureintended.uk.com
