Category: Food News

  • Wild mushroom hunting, Co. Wicklow, September 29 & October 6

    I’ve always been fascinated by mushrooms. They were the first food I ever gagged at; the very thought of eating them, in soup or whole, makes my throat close over. But I also have a profound respect for the kingdom of fungi: without them, nothing could ever decompose, and nothing new could grow, us included.…

  • Organic food, GM and air miles

    Professor Mike Gibney (of ‘Something to Chew On‘) has a really interesting piece in a recent Irish Times, in which he addresses the controversial issues of organic food, genetically-modified crops and carbon footprints of various items.  Well worth a read for a scientific perspective.

  • Foodie Events this Bank Holiday weekend: Bloom & more

    The Bloom Festival is on this weekend in Dublin’s Phoenix Park; it’s a garden-themed festival but there’s lots more to do as well, and it attracts one of the biggest crowds of any Irish event.  Tickets are still available, from €12-€20 (kids are free). For food fans, there’s an artisan market and cookery demonstrations from…

  • Unhealthy food is cheaper, says new report

    Can you eat healthy on the cheap? Really healthy, really good quality food? I think not. I’ve said as much in many interviews radio and press interviews: it’s cheaper to buy a frozen pizza than fresh meat; it’s cheaper to pick up a packet of fish fingers and a few tins of beans than fresh vegetables…

  • The case against Tesco

    Tesco has been fined €600 for charging more for goods at the tills than the price displayed at the shelves. But much like you or I would be oblivious to a one cent piece at the back of a drawer of odds and ends, Tesco won’t miss this €600. Ireland’s largest retailer was convicted for breaches…

  • Tesco clamp down on free speech, thought

    This is spooky. A journalist from The Guardian newspaper reports that he was accosted by Tesco staff last week for the “crime” of writing down prices on a notepad. The manager told him that Tesco policy forbids people writing down prices. Presumably, they’re afraid that people will discover they’re not such good value after all.…

  • SuperValu price cuts

    I get a lot of press releases. Here’s one I thought deserved some attention. SuperValu recently announced a grand plan to reduce the cost of an average weekly shopping basket from €132 per week to €102. Price cuts and promotions form the backbone of the Spend Less campaign, with the focus on everyday items like cereal,…

  • Superquinn Takeover: what do you think?

    You’ll all have heard the news by now about Superquinn being bought out by the Musgrave group, owners of Super Valu and Centra. On the positive side, it’s very good to hear that they have pledged to keep all 2,800 Superquinn employees in jobs.  On the downside, it could mean reduced competition in the Irish…

  • Grocery prices up

    Grocery prices have risen in the past year, according to a report by Conor Pope in today’s Irish Times. Pope points to a report by the National Consumer Agency which shows that prices have risen by five per cent since July 2010, significantly higher than the rate of inflation. The report also found that little…

  • Crackbird reopens tonight?

    Exciting news… Crackbird are teasing us all with this picture on their Twitter account. Rumour has it that they’re reopening tonight on South William Street. Fingers crossed… Thanks to Rebecca for the tip off.