My first Jersey Royals (80p a pound) from the greengrocer were disappointing, perhaps compromised by the terrible weather in April. At Tesco this week, the Jerseys were £2.45 for a small bag; I bought organic new potatoes, of an unnamed variety and from Israel, instead. Some might say that buying Israeli potatoes from Tesco is unsound for three reasons (political, ecological, and societal); but I go only so far as an ethical shopper. Israeli farmers have a right to earn a living, I think.
I used them for a Delia Smith-style cheats' dinner: ready-prepared smoked mackerel fillets, flaked (I like their oiliness); half a bottle of artichoke hearts, drained; half a bottle of "Greek-style" black olives, stoned; one bottled pepper, sliced. Once the potatoes (about 10 of them, sliced) had cooled, I stirred everything together with two dstsps of mayonnaise -- which I had made. Plenty for two.
1 comment:
Hi,
I noticed your explanation that it was fine to buy Israeli as they deserve a living too.
Unfortunately it is not that simple.
Illegal Israeli settlements built on private Palestinian land have been used to set up organic farms. Under international law these products should be banned, however it is the stated policy of the Israeli government to refuse to place separate labels on goods from these settlements. The EU has several times threatened to halt imports over this infringement but has always stepped down.
As a result, there is no way a consumer can tell if the ‘made in Israel’ label refers to Israeli products or to products from the settlements.
This is just one of the reasons for not buying Israeli products, if you are interested in getting the sources of the information above, or in other reasons to boycott, I would be more than happy to send on some links.
Anne
annmariaf@wildmail.com
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