2011 a year in veg 2012 the year of veg ?

As twilight descends over the embers of 2011 the final deliveries leave for there destinations and displays readied for (hopefully)one last sales push we must be mindful and ready ourselves for what promises to be at very least an eventful 2012 for us here at veg HQ and indeed the whole independent fresh produce sector,and through the mist and rhetoric I can't help thinking that that both the biggest test and opportunity for retailers lies ahead depending on whether you are half full or half empty the future is largely in our hands and we as independents can really effect and alter our own landscapes by embracing the "now"letting go of the"then" work to our strengths and capitalise on the weaknesses so prevalent in the supermarket model you just never know...we might just See a positive change of fortune for us all and 2012 might just be the year the independent fought back ! happy new year to you all

Andreas

The REAL story(ish) about Supermarket man

Well all things considered it was great to see the brave BBC take on the establishment ... The establishment you say it was only a show about Supermarkets...you heard right ! as since they started there demolition of the high streets and dictation of Government policy they've been a fixture of the establishment with there ruthless pursuit of profit at almost any cost wether it be health encouraging food waste or simply OVERCHARGING which in essence would have had a huge impact on the current financial hardship many families currently have to endure thanks to years of being overcharged and allowed to be fleeced without robust regulations.
Those of you who are more familiar with me will know that this is no bandwagon piece and many points raised in Panoramas show and these amongst other points were raised during my veg surgeries at the people's supermarket(soon to commence again in Chiswick). I am myself no messiah and do not have all the answers and all I can do is price my stock transparently and honestly so the customer knows exactly what they are purchasing and paying for and the supermarkets must do the same with no slight of hand sales technique or use of clever phsycology and confusions... if they don't it's simple ban them from advertising and sponsoring TV shows and as for the fabulous wealth enjoyed by there executives ....that's for another day

Mother natures confusion yields ...

A Fabulous yield of fresh PORCINI ! the first time I recall a 3rd flush and certainly to get such amazing yields is unprecedented ... But we are all delighted

Creating a stir

Having plenty fun with lots of fab people at Masterchef live and creating a bit of a stir

Into the unknown

So here we are first forage into the world of food exhibitions as we "exhibit"at masterchef live which on the face of it seems a crazy idea - small local greengrocer in amongst other large brands like Tefal,Belling and Jaguar however it works there is space for the little man in this arena and could end up being a valuable exercise.
My only real expectation was perhaps to see if we( greengrocers) still had a place in the modern commercial market place and the answer given the response we have had is a yes with a but ...

Fishing for thoughts

While searching for inspiration Andreas perches on a giant pumpkin while using cavollo as a rod ........... (he only needs to nip next door to get fish)

Goodbye to the Peoples Supermarket

Now that the emotion has passed from my farewell to the people supermarket I feel it's really important for me to say how much of a positive and fabulous journey it has been for me and I will always be grateful and humble for the experience and despite Kate's twitter comment that there would be no TPS without me which although nice to hear is not quite the real picture in my eyes ......I think the real Heroes are the Nelsons,Tasha's ,Nigel's,Toms,Actars and Mo who have really created such a fabulous story

Our busy little hub

Great to have so much great feedback with regards to our fabulous well sourced fruit and vegetables from our customers and great to see approval from Valantine and Mikeal this morning showing our little shop is a perfect hub for fine growers and Chefs alike

There is profit and self fulfilment in effort

On Monday evening I travelled on the Eurostar to one of the worlds finest food markets in Rungis Paris to visit and reenforce existing relationships with the fabulous growers and wholesalers who provide some of the great produce found on our shelves and in true Andreas tradition we discovered even more gorgeous finery which today adorns no 35 and despite the sleep depravity and blisters a plenty(Rungis covers 25 acres with 11 football pitch sized veg halls)we are really pleased with the response from our customers who are seeing many items selected for there excellence and also items sold "off the shelf"which would have only been available to them as part of completed dishes in high end restaurants which makes us proud ...... which goes to show there is profit and self fulfilment in effort

Garlic a plenty in Rungis international market

Wow now this is a whole heap of garlic I literally bumped into in Rungis market ...you can purchase much of the bounty I sourced exclusively in our shop from this weekend !

Channel 5 news interview andreas

Outside the shop being Interviewed for Tonight's 7pm channel 5 news ...with my views about the great supermarket swindle

Happy twitter 1st twitter birthday to us at Andreas

A selection of the kind mentions made about us in our first twitter year.....
“Numero uno””great veg great bloke””the master himself””Great veg last night from andreas”“Londons finest””my veg guru” “andreas is to retail greengrocery what Michelangelo was to interior decorating. Amazing range of produce, lucky lucky Chiswick”“the best avocado we have ever tasted””fantastic selection as usual””top suppliers”“oooh fantastic” “thanks andreas for superior veg” “thanks andreas for the fresh produce the best grapes I have ever tasted”””lovely bounty from andreasveg””thanks for the amazing veg””send some(veg) somerset way” “super-talented””your shrooms were indeed delicious””thanks for coming today and supplying the fantastic produce””andreas does a badass wildmushroom thing” “I got some from @andreasveg at the weekend, they were delicious”” Just to say how lovely @andreasveg has just been to me. You should visit his lovely shop in Turnham Green for fantastic, quality fruit & veg oh and…… ”the king of veg”
Thankyou x

Filming in store for daybreak

Great to have Jo Pratt,ollie and Rosa in filming for daybreak today .....the kids were very lively indeed

Shelves stocked with autumn loveliness

Coloured caulis

Loverly caulis of all varieties in store

Valentine pops by

Great to have our great mate Valentine Warner pop by and fiddle around with our celeriac as you know he often highlights the virtues of this great vegetable

Stunning Fresh French figs available at a bargin price

Only £1 for 3 of these beuties

A new Dawn in fresh produce

Really delighted to introduce our new website with the "daily feed"the first fresh produce website with a constant stream of daily information and updates on what is available at Andreas fine fruit and vegetables we hope you like it

Just peachey

Sweet and juicy White peaches

Porcini

Last of the Summer vine

Enjoy this unexpected bonus summer weekend with a salad of cote de beouf tomatoes

Mushtastic weekend

Thursday

We wish we had these today... Enjoy the sunshine!

The damage has been done

What a relif to see the times and telegraph giving the ecoli story intelligent report...although in essence all that has been done is
Qualify what all industry people know that the problem was localised to a small area in Germany and nothing to do with the wider food production industry with all areas including Food terrorism "being investigated then question remains on how the Government agencies allowed this hysterical reporting to cause so much damage to the Independent produce business by litterally hanging out to dry many hardworking people with neither the means nor the back up they require to reassure consumers.
The supermarkets rather than use this as an opportunity to educate the public simply removed large amounts of Spanish produce from the shelves and cancelled orders from Spainand even cut down orders of Salad products from long term English growers ....there trusted"partners"
once again profit first ......it begs the question what would happen if a real crisis happens who would stand up and lead us through it let's hope that never happens because I doubt there is anybody in government or food agencies able enough. And in the words of Franco pullera grower and supplier to the Peoples supermarket,myself and a small chain called Tescos "the damage has been done"

6 ways to stay alive this weekend

6 ways to stay alive this weekend

1) Buy your fresh produce from a trusted source(me)       

2) Check provenance(where it’s from)

3) Wash thoroughly (don’t use dettol or bleach)

4) Wash hands after poohing or wee wees(not just this weekend all the time kids too)

5) Separate meat fish and veg when prepping(in case of x contamination)

                           6)Don’t go to hamburg ….ever 

May be may be not.....

It was brought to my attention that commodities brokers are lagely responsible for the high cost of food stuffs with reckless trading with thought only for profit rather the welfare of the people of the world ...should we be surprised that profit,dividends and bonuses should be more important than filling the belly of a child in Africa of course not ! I mean what exactly is the point of our government sending over priced food when it does not regulate the shameless profiteering of banks and other financial intatutions it's madness as is the fact that we waste 10 billion pounds worth of food a year in the Uk when over a million people struggle to eat ! often food is thrown away due to over buying or marketing trickery of supermarkets which dictate what we must buy as opposed to what we need we are lazy shoppers and allow ourselves to be suckers for a "bargain".
Don't get me wrong it's not just the supermarkets that encourage us to over buy the "bolt it ot"bowl culture of many of my peers is also not helpful but at least does do the service of clearing the markets of cheap lines but ultimately devalues produce and creates confusion in consumers.
I originally viewed with scepticism the fact that councils were running courses in teaching people how to shop but I think it is a necessity that people are educated in food buying so this spiral of waste diminishes.
There are many other reasons why the independent fresh food industry is in such a venerable position but that's for another time when I can afford better legal council but for now buy what you need and support where you can those who need it I am always around to help at my shop or at the peoples supermarket

Basically my point is

Shower of April

Well having Spent much time doing bits at the peoples supermarket and continuing my quest to find the the finest possible quality of produce for Andreas ffg my attention has been drawn away from the subliminal trangrestions of the soopermarkets to the sheer shameless masquerades of "farmers markets"of which I have visited a plenty only to find a familiar pattern where fresh produce is concerned some people advertising there whares as specifically from a perticular farm are in fact lying, so much so that I was almost moved to call trading standards at the most blatant piss take in this area I have yet seen Sunday just gone, however i remembered the words of obi wan kanobi .."who is more foolish the fool or the fool who pays through the nose for farm grown(bought outa the market)produce".look I am all for free trade etc just be honest about it and show some integrity.
Anyway to move to things more posativa we at "affav"are really delighted to be able to say we believe we have the best overal quality and selection of produce we have ever had and that is really saying something and with daily arrivals from italia,France,Kent,isle of White and of course market fresh produce from western international and Covent garden,it is really satisfying to know that these efforts are appreciated.
Look it's not the easiest thing to collate both mentally and physically but by putting this effort in we provide fine quality and choice which is what the consumer deserves.
Right I'm done for the mo will enlighten further during the month ......oh and I might just have a surprise or two to announce.

"mad as a march hare"

It is undeniable that perhaps our appetite for traditional shopping has waned with the advent of parking restrictions and huge Supermarkets sights offering everything from fresh produce to TV dinners,TV S and indeed a sofa to sit on and fry your brain and poison your inner-self,however although reluctant to go supermarket bashing after all they contribute so much,employment to zillions, convenience, and great deals .......or do they or is it modern day slight of hand that Houdini himself would be proud.
my last 8 months of work at the peoples supermarket has led me down a road of discovery  of how by subtle and clever techniques we are encouraged to waste food and more alarming overpay compared to the traditional independent market system which was so prevalent  in our society up till 20 or so years ago.
Through re packing,clever wording and subtle 2 for 1 offers we are encouraged to spend between 20-40 % more on fresh produce than we should ..... FACT.
 Loss leaders like fairtrade Bananas at 77p per kilo entice yet do we question how a much of the 77p per kilo goes to the plantation I guarantee there will be nothing fair about it.
Two thirds of all market business has been lost and many good people have lost there lively hoods and businesses because we as a nation have fallen into the trap of believing we get a better deal from the Supermarkets which is simply not the case .........but don't just trust me do your own comparisons or either see my example on the peoples supermarket website or pop in to my shop and I will  happily discuss....you would be as mad as a March hare not to.


Andreas, produce Surgery(aided by Rachel) Tuesday 12-1 The Peoples Supermarket lambs Conduit Street 

ChiswickW4 ask...

Could the Peoples Supermarket Work in Chiswick?

We speak to Andreas Georghiou about his involvement with the project... read more

My perfect weekend: James Purefoy

thanks for the mention James... click here to read

welcome

Hi... & welcome to my new journal/blog, i hope you enjoy

andreas