In the light of this week's papers re Organic Food we thought it useful to describe our food philosophy as regards raw ingredient sourcing. It's a bit long winded because primarily there is no right or wrong answer (but plenty of bad practises that we avoid) so here goes.......
SCOFF Food Policy/Philosophy/understanding/thing
We have a philosophy that effectively means we use the term ‘natural’ food in terms of our raw ingredient buying policy. What does this mean? Essentially it means what you would understand by the term organic, but there is certified organic food and non-certified organic food. How do we know it is organic if it's not certified? We have visited the farms and seen for ourselves how the food is produced. We believe we have gone one step further than straight organic. The important thing to bear in mind is that an organic certification does not guarantee quality. We buy direct from the producer so we know exactly what we are getting. Also, because there is no middleman taking a cut, the farmer gets a fair price.
Getting your produce certified is a costly time consuming business making it impossible for many small scale producers to achieve. Instead they rely on their reputation and the superior taste of their food to convince the consumer that they are eating something great. Limiting ourselves to certified organic produce would mean we could not benefit from the fantastic produce grown organically but just not certified. We work directly with individual farmers (such as the ones you would find in Borough Market) whom are passionate about their produce and the environment it is grown in. As an example – our vegetable farmer in Somerset is not ‘certified organic’ partly because of the burden of paperwork and also the fact that some of his very old fashioned seed he uses is not organic certified simply because the expense could not be justified to certify it. Thus, even though he uses organic growing method (he is chemical and fertiliser free) , because the seed is not certified he could not use the organic certification for his produce. Because the seed is not certified however, does not mean it has been non-organically produced. In fact, his produce is superior to mainstream organic Veg because he uses tastier varieties. Supermarkets go for varieties that are more naturally pest resistant to keep yields high and hence profits up. Sadly, the real price you pay for this is less flavour. Nature is clever like that - she never let's you have your cake and eat it! We also believe that home grown produce from a trustworthy source is a preferable choice to certified organic from the other side of the globe.
There is also a lot more involved in producing great meat than simply ticking the organic box. It is a lot to do with breed as well as husbandry. All the meat we use is from traditional breeds of animal that are grass-fed and allowed to mature at nature's pace. These have fallen out of favour in modern times because higher profits can be obtained by using faster growing larger animals. But again the real price is in the flavour. The producers we buy from do not use growth promoting hormones, or routine administration of antibiotics. They allow the animals to wean at the correct age rather than the commercial practice of weaning early and then feeding antibiotics to keep infection at bay because really they still need the health properties of their mother's milk. Many commercial animals are not even allowed to graze because it's quicker to pump them full of high calorie (often GM ) feed. Using the traditional methods means it takes longer for the animals to reach slaughter weight but boy is it worth it - both for us and the animal. As an example, we know the woodland that all the Rare Breed Saddleback Pigs roam in Dartmoor for all our Pork products and we know the farmers feeding and management regimes.
For dry and store cupboard ingredients we use a Food Co-Operative whom only stock Organic and Fair trade goods. Lentils, rice, flour, sugar, butter, milk are all organic to list a handful.
To sum up – generally, we use traditional varieties (non GM) of meat and vegetables. Meat/Veg is sourced from farms we have visited and we understand their management of crops/livestock – and in all cases the farms are run on traditional lines – no GM, No Chemicals, no routine antibiotics, slow growing breeds etc. For everything else (spices, flour etc.) we choose organic first and then Fair Trade.
This is a huge topic and one that we can pretty much talk all the time about. The latest findings that Organic Food is better for you come as no great surprise. Although this sort of report is great for the industry in general and is true, that does not in our opinion dismiss food that is not ‘certified organic’. If we chose the organic route entirely we would not have access to the range of fabulous produce now available to us – and we choose on taste and flavour above all else.
Food quality and provenance just doesn't get any better than this. If you choose any of our dishes and include our Veg portion you will have done your body some good and supported some of the very best food producers in the country which has to be a good thing! If everyone still farmed the way they do we would have no need to even bother with an organic certification system - it could be taken for granted that all food was as nature intended.
Steve and Sarah Rushton
November 2007
Showing posts with label Things to know about Scoff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Things to know about Scoff. Show all posts
Thursday, 1 November 2007
Friday, 12 October 2007
We had a great review!
How exciting - our review in the Evening Standard!
Keeps us all focused & and we have found a site to open in Islington so we can continue with our City Scoff contracts -exciting times ahead!
Off for a celebratory drink now!
Wednesday, 3 October 2007
Healthy School Meals
Sitting in my car on the way to our Kingston kitchen today listening to the news headlines…
‘Jamie Oliver’s School meals project crashes’
Apparently the number of kids eating healthy meals has declined since the launch of Jamie’s Healthy School meals project. Interviewed children were reported as saying that they didn’t like the food and that it was too expensive. Firstly – what do kid’s know about how much good food costs and in any case, when you are a kid you feel pretty invincible and so would good food really concern you?
I remember when I was growing up and in my teens feeling pretty healthy. OK – I had no choice of school meals. Meat and 2 veg and I played sport every day. BUT – I also smoked and ate the usual rubbish (KFC/Burgers etc. though not in the quantity kids eat them today). Did it have an effect on me? – Not that I would have realised at the time. Your body at that stage in life is pretty good at working and so some abuse really doesn’t do it too much harm, as long as that abuse isn’t long term. Try keeping up the abuse until you are 40 and then apply for a slot on Channel 4’s ‘10 years younger’!
The issue we have now is that because kids are allowed choice of food at school they will normally in their masses choose (a) the unhealthy option because despite Jamie’s best efforts healthy food is not seen as cool and (b) choose the food they recognise. We cook everyday at home (well, we used to until we moved to a SCOFF delivery zone!) and don’t eat deep fried food. By comparison, out children have supper at friends houses and it does still amaze me how many smiley faces there out there. In my childhood days it was either a case of eating what was on the table or go hungry (I think the war and rationing was still remembered and with that now a long way away values have shifted).
So – in this PC world we live in we allow Kid’s rights and choices often in line with adults choices, failing to remember that these are just kids and that the point of education is to teach them the right from wrong, good from bad and impart knowledge so that they can make the right choices later in life. Perhaps with the healthy food question we should have also asked if the children valued Maths, English and Latin! I am pretty sure that the response would have been the same as that when questioned about healthy food – but does that mean that we then don’t teach them the basics anymore?
Why is good food a fundamental part of a good education?
The knowledge we learn in our youth sets us up for life. Independent tests have shown that children eating healthy food have a better attention span in class, less allergies and therefore stood a better chance of learning what they needed to know to go on and achieve the best they can.
The habits that children learn in their youth will set them up for life. Why we are obese as a nation, why do immigrants to this country achieve more than some of our indigenous population (see Jon Snow’s Channel 4 Despatches). Food – our fuel, has a part to play in answering some of these questions, if not in full, certainly in part.
The survival of our intelligence, our abilities, our countryside management, our animal welfare, our place in the world is dependent on what we eat – our fuel. I know that I always feel more content, balanced (not that I am unstable!), nourished and a better husband and parent after a good meal and that I make better decisions.
So – let’s not give up on this project. Yes – it’s difficult to produce food that kids will like who are more used to eating junk. It will take more than just putting the food in front of them – it will take class & home education as well. It’s of course difficult for the caterers to work within budgets and re-train their staff to cook properly. It’s difficult, so what, what things worth doing aren’t difficult in life.
For our part we have committed to supplying SCOFF to a local school from next January. No, it won’t make us oodles of money (or any really) and requires us to operate slightly differently. But on the plus side we can guarantee some children receive food produced ethically without the use of chemicals, cooked with care without any gunk and it will really nourish them. Let’s hope we have more success than the schools I am hearing of on the news this morning.
‘Jamie Oliver’s School meals project crashes’
Apparently the number of kids eating healthy meals has declined since the launch of Jamie’s Healthy School meals project. Interviewed children were reported as saying that they didn’t like the food and that it was too expensive. Firstly – what do kid’s know about how much good food costs and in any case, when you are a kid you feel pretty invincible and so would good food really concern you?
I remember when I was growing up and in my teens feeling pretty healthy. OK – I had no choice of school meals. Meat and 2 veg and I played sport every day. BUT – I also smoked and ate the usual rubbish (KFC/Burgers etc. though not in the quantity kids eat them today). Did it have an effect on me? – Not that I would have realised at the time. Your body at that stage in life is pretty good at working and so some abuse really doesn’t do it too much harm, as long as that abuse isn’t long term. Try keeping up the abuse until you are 40 and then apply for a slot on Channel 4’s ‘10 years younger’!
The issue we have now is that because kids are allowed choice of food at school they will normally in their masses choose (a) the unhealthy option because despite Jamie’s best efforts healthy food is not seen as cool and (b) choose the food they recognise. We cook everyday at home (well, we used to until we moved to a SCOFF delivery zone!) and don’t eat deep fried food. By comparison, out children have supper at friends houses and it does still amaze me how many smiley faces there out there. In my childhood days it was either a case of eating what was on the table or go hungry (I think the war and rationing was still remembered and with that now a long way away values have shifted).
So – in this PC world we live in we allow Kid’s rights and choices often in line with adults choices, failing to remember that these are just kids and that the point of education is to teach them the right from wrong, good from bad and impart knowledge so that they can make the right choices later in life. Perhaps with the healthy food question we should have also asked if the children valued Maths, English and Latin! I am pretty sure that the response would have been the same as that when questioned about healthy food – but does that mean that we then don’t teach them the basics anymore?
Why is good food a fundamental part of a good education?
The knowledge we learn in our youth sets us up for life. Independent tests have shown that children eating healthy food have a better attention span in class, less allergies and therefore stood a better chance of learning what they needed to know to go on and achieve the best they can.
The habits that children learn in their youth will set them up for life. Why we are obese as a nation, why do immigrants to this country achieve more than some of our indigenous population (see Jon Snow’s Channel 4 Despatches). Food – our fuel, has a part to play in answering some of these questions, if not in full, certainly in part.
The survival of our intelligence, our abilities, our countryside management, our animal welfare, our place in the world is dependent on what we eat – our fuel. I know that I always feel more content, balanced (not that I am unstable!), nourished and a better husband and parent after a good meal and that I make better decisions.
So – let’s not give up on this project. Yes – it’s difficult to produce food that kids will like who are more used to eating junk. It will take more than just putting the food in front of them – it will take class & home education as well. It’s of course difficult for the caterers to work within budgets and re-train their staff to cook properly. It’s difficult, so what, what things worth doing aren’t difficult in life.
For our part we have committed to supplying SCOFF to a local school from next January. No, it won’t make us oodles of money (or any really) and requires us to operate slightly differently. But on the plus side we can guarantee some children receive food produced ethically without the use of chemicals, cooked with care without any gunk and it will really nourish them. Let’s hope we have more success than the schools I am hearing of on the news this morning.
Sunday, 12 August 2007
No Added Salt or Sugar
I have just spent the week in our Devon Development kitchen working on the latest Special for our ‘blackboard’ – really pleased with the results even if I do say so! Organic salmon, poached to order with a warm cannellini bean salad. The best thing about this dish for us is that because of the technology we use for delivery of our hot food the salmon arrives in perfect condition to the customer. It is also incredibly healthy but tastes great.
I was in the Fulham shop on Friday night having trained the guys on how to prepare the dish. I met a customer early on ordering his 'Bangers and Mash'. Turns out we have now become a great alternative to his usual convenience of 'Simply M + S' - just what we set out to do! What he did mention to me was the thing he liked (other than the taste) of our meals was that unlike lots of other convenience food he did not wake up in the middle of the night all thirsty because of the excess salt in the food - in fact, I told him, there is very little salt used in our food and hence a discussion on why the food then tastes so good and how this is acheived - when other ready meal options fail.
The simple answer is great ingredients - cooked properly. Simple as that. It is amazing though what some chefs add to dishes. I have found some we have employed over the past few years to be very partial to adding sugar and over seasoning food. It is very important to us for people to recognise the quality of our food as well as it being a ‘convenience option’. We don’t add excess salt or any sugar (unless it is a pudding and the recipe calls for it). I am a self trained cook and so I have been lucky enough not to have anyone showing me poor cooking skills in catering college (see Oliver Peyton’s latest rant on catering colleges). So we do things the old fashioned way, with great ingredients grown the old fashioned way.
By the by we ordered from a competitor on Thursday and the hummus and tzatziki seemed loaded with sugar (to the point they did not actually taste at all like they should). The kids rejected them (usually our final test on any menu item), and even Tom, whom likes most things sweet left the hummus (he noshes SCOFF hummus) and said he liked it, left it. (Note: Tom is not 3 yet so his comments should always be taken lightly, though not his taste buds!)
I was in the Fulham shop on Friday night having trained the guys on how to prepare the dish. I met a customer early on ordering his 'Bangers and Mash'. Turns out we have now become a great alternative to his usual convenience of 'Simply M + S' - just what we set out to do! What he did mention to me was the thing he liked (other than the taste) of our meals was that unlike lots of other convenience food he did not wake up in the middle of the night all thirsty because of the excess salt in the food - in fact, I told him, there is very little salt used in our food and hence a discussion on why the food then tastes so good and how this is acheived - when other ready meal options fail.
The simple answer is great ingredients - cooked properly. Simple as that. It is amazing though what some chefs add to dishes. I have found some we have employed over the past few years to be very partial to adding sugar and over seasoning food. It is very important to us for people to recognise the quality of our food as well as it being a ‘convenience option’. We don’t add excess salt or any sugar (unless it is a pudding and the recipe calls for it). I am a self trained cook and so I have been lucky enough not to have anyone showing me poor cooking skills in catering college (see Oliver Peyton’s latest rant on catering colleges). So we do things the old fashioned way, with great ingredients grown the old fashioned way.
By the by we ordered from a competitor on Thursday and the hummus and tzatziki seemed loaded with sugar (to the point they did not actually taste at all like they should). The kids rejected them (usually our final test on any menu item), and even Tom, whom likes most things sweet left the hummus (he noshes SCOFF hummus) and said he liked it, left it. (Note: Tom is not 3 yet so his comments should always be taken lightly, though not his taste buds!)
Sunday, 24 June 2007
Things you should know about our Scoff.
Scoff is all about great tasting food, professionally cooked using the best traditionally farmed ingredients.
We opened our first site on the Fulham Road in May 2007, near to Parsons Green Tube.
The Journey
We have a passion for real food and own two dining pubs in the West Country, taking full advantage of the abundance of good, local produce available. Suppliers have been personally selected for the quality of their produce and the traditional methods by which it is farmed.
We have applied exactly the same principles to the food at Scoff, so for the first time it is possible to enjoy the convenience of a take away meal with out compromising on the quality of the food. At the very heart of the whole business and the whole process is the relationship with producers. Buying directly from the farm gate has the double benefit of full traceability and the farmer being paid a fair price for his quality product.
All our meals are prepared from scratch by our own chefs, including all the stocks and sauces.
We only use real, natural ingredients. We never use artificial colourings, flavour enhancers, preservatives or cheap bulking agents.
All our meat comes from farms in the West Country. We have personally selected producers who farm in the traditional way to produce a better quality, healthier product. This means animals that are reared in a non-intensive environment and allowed to grow at their natural pace. They are not subjected to growth hormones or routine administration of antibiotics. This makes for a healthier animal which we believe is healthier for us.
Our main vegetable supplier is based in Somerset and farms without the use of chemicals or pesticides and chooses his varieties based on flavour.
Our eggs are from a free-range poultry farm in East Devon
We only use organic milk and butter.
Our dry goods come from essential trading.
We opened our first site on the Fulham Road in May 2007, near to Parsons Green Tube.
The Journey
We have a passion for real food and own two dining pubs in the West Country, taking full advantage of the abundance of good, local produce available. Suppliers have been personally selected for the quality of their produce and the traditional methods by which it is farmed.
We have applied exactly the same principles to the food at Scoff, so for the first time it is possible to enjoy the convenience of a take away meal with out compromising on the quality of the food. At the very heart of the whole business and the whole process is the relationship with producers. Buying directly from the farm gate has the double benefit of full traceability and the farmer being paid a fair price for his quality product.
All our meals are prepared from scratch by our own chefs, including all the stocks and sauces.
We only use real, natural ingredients. We never use artificial colourings, flavour enhancers, preservatives or cheap bulking agents.
All our meat comes from farms in the West Country. We have personally selected producers who farm in the traditional way to produce a better quality, healthier product. This means animals that are reared in a non-intensive environment and allowed to grow at their natural pace. They are not subjected to growth hormones or routine administration of antibiotics. This makes for a healthier animal which we believe is healthier for us.
Our main vegetable supplier is based in Somerset and farms without the use of chemicals or pesticides and chooses his varieties based on flavour.
Our eggs are from a free-range poultry farm in East Devon
We only use organic milk and butter.
Our dry goods come from essential trading.
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