I get a buzz out of foraging for food. I love that foraged food is free, has super low food miles, and provides yet another alternative to buying food from the supermarket. It also seems absurd to ignore these local food sources. I believe there’s more to ‘the buzz’ than simply knowing the advantages of foraged food. I sense an almost primal urge to gather and forage. There are a number of foods I’m comfortable foraging, like Purslane (shown above), New Zealand Spinach (shown below), Blackberries and fruit from abandoned trees, but I’d like to expand the foods I forage.... Read more →

The Little Eco Footprints family is now four and a half months into the skipping the supermarket challenge - skipping supermarkets, shopping malls and super chains. Until a month or so ago the challenge was a bit of a non-issue and was a restriction we hardly noticed. We've continued to get a weekly veggie box through a Community Supported Agriculture farm and regularly pop into our local greengrocer for dairy and fruit. I get pantry staples like nuts, dried fruit, pulses and rice through a local mum-run bulk-buying club (who orders from Honest to Goodness) and we can usually find... Read more →

The Little Eco Footprints household is avoiding packaged breakfast cereals in an effort to save money, reduce packaging and minimise food miles. We used to buy weet-bix, rice bubbles or muesli every now and then, but now that we're skipping the supermarket that's not an option. There's some packaged cereals at our local organic food store, but they are super expensive and many are imported. Little Eco has been relatively easy to cater for. I’ve built up a long list of kid friendly alternatives to packaged breakfast cereals. I shared my top ten easy and healthy breakfast choices for kids... Read more →

Skipping the Supermarket Challenge Update We thankfully breezed through our first month of the skipping the supermarket challenge. I thought I needed something from the supermarket a few times, but then found I could do without, make it myself, or use a substitute. I've been trying to remember to take photos of our meals to proove that we're not missing anything. I hope to share them all at some stage. The above is zucchini fritters, with local olives bought from Organic Feast, home made tomato sauce, cherry tomatoes from a friends garden (thanks Monique!), and cucumbers and onion from our... Read more →

Do the milk wars bother you? Are you frustrated by the way supermarkets treat dairy farmers and milk processors? Would you like your milk to be free of additives and dilution? Do you want to buy real milk but do not know where to buy it? Thankfully, there are an increasing number of small dairies taking back control from the supermarkets and going out on their own. You most likely won’t find this milk on supermarket shelves. “If you like the taste of old-fashioned, full-cream milk that hasn’t been homogenised, or you’d prefer milk from cows that have been treated... Read more →