If we don't buy it, They can't sell it

News Bites
As you will all have seen from my previous Blog earlier today, another UK Paper Mill is closing, and another   group of friends, met through training, will be looking for another job.

Rumour has it the manufacturing processes will go to China and Sweden.

This of course will mean another lowering of manufacturing's contribution to the country's GDP, which is sadly only around 11%

Where does most of the rest of the GDP come from? Financial Services!! With our recent mountain of scandals related to the banks, LIBOR, mis-sold pensions, mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance,  etc, the world could turn away from London as a financial hub in an instant! With today's technology, it would not take very long to relocate to somewhere warmer, drier, and more honest.

We would then plummet into 3rd world status before you could microwave a lasagne.

But there is a link to this story and the 'contaminated' food.

This is ALL ABOUT NUMBERS. And there are a hell of a lot more of us than there are politicians!

Our buying power (and refusing-to-buy-power) can have a much greater effect than anything a politician does or says.

I would say the 'horse' contamination is more the fault of the public than the supermarkets.

The public has driven the manufacturers to buy the cheapest and not ask too many questions.

You have a choice, a nice good quality piece of English steak, or mince, that you can use to prepare a home made meal, OR you can go for some CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP ready made stodgy stuff!

Look at this logically, step by step
If you keep buying the cheapest you can find, then you will force the manufacturers to make it as cheap as possible. (this could be a ready meal, or a bicycle)

If the manufacturers buy the best quality raw materials they can, (say Aberdeen Angus beef), and they buy the best quality equipment in which to prepare it, and they have the highest quality environmental standards, and the most sophisticated and rigorous testing, and the best people to cook it, then you will not end up with the cheapest product on the shelf will you?

The only way to make a cheaper product, is to reduce quality. And every time you buy the cheapest on the shelf, you are saying to the manufacturer "OK mate, I agree with you cutting corners"

So, Mr Mrs and Miss General Public If you force them to cut corners what are you forcing to do?

Testing, - well they could cut that out, that will save a pack of money
Equipment - don't need all the easy to clean stainless steel stuff, get a big plastic tub and an old wooden paddle
People, - get rid of the graduate, and put a homeless guy in, he will work for next to nothing, maybe just a warm place to sleep and his food. Doesn't matter if he is not too well or if a bit of his fag ash falls into the mix as he stirs it, no one will be able to find it.
The Meat: And finally what about the meat? Well UK meat will be far too expensive, after all, we take good care of all the cattle and make sure they are well fed and disease free, and happy. Better go to somewhere where they do not care about these things. Hey what about going to the animal scrap yard? They are either sick or already dead there, we can save the cost of killing them, bet they are really cheap.

We all know that we eat far too much food, and usually most of that food is bad for us.

So we have a choice

We can spend small money on a large unhealthy tray of ready made stodge and support another country and not care about our health or our fellow countrymen

OR

We can spend the same money on a small portion of good quality Home Reared meat, live healthier, eat healthier, and support our own country


Thought for the day

I drive way too fast to worry about cholesterol.