After meeting constituents face-to-face to hear the issues they wanted to raise with me it was off this morning to Budgens in Crouch End to launch / support their new scheme for getting us all to cut out using plastic bags for our shopping.

Their campaign is called ‘Pennies for Plastic’ because the cost of each plastic bag is 1p and for every single one that the customers don’t use Budgens are giving that money to a local project. This time the money will go to Weston Park Primary School. They have had the children draw this huge painting of the Clock Tower and the kids arrive for photo opportunities with their painting, trolleys full of plastic bags (5,000 per day are used) and T-shirts to support the cause. Budgens want everyone to use the purchasable environmentally sound bag – and reuse it every time – or bring their own shopping bag. And it isn’t stopping there – as Budgens are getting together all the independents in Crouch End to support this campaign. It’s win, win, win, win! Local store, local produce, local schools and local community – that’s how to do it!

And because I am so pleased with Budgens taking on this environmental challenge I want to big them up on their approach to their food too! Their new smoothies and fresh food stand is at the front of the shop (delicious smoothie – all fresh ingredients as you can get as they are frozen at the height of their fruit being lives and then used when needed).

Andrew Thornton showed me around and what is clear is that Budgens has decided to make their food as local as possible and as fresh as possible – thus proving that providing good produce reaps financial rewards too! I was amazed that they were able to commission individual orders from specialist local food producers or makers – like the pesto where the father grew the herbs (locally) and the daughter picked them and took them back to her kitchen to make, with the end product now on Andrew’s shelves.