Oh joy - cheaper beans, garlic, gherkins, marmalade and sweets

Out of those things, I eat only beans and garlic. I quite like gherkins, but I haven’t bought them for years.

I wonder if the government has done a survey to ensure nearly every person buys or consumes at least one of those items? Then they can say they have reduced the cost of food for every person in the UK. I know I sound cynical, and a reduction in cost is better than an increase,  but I can’t help wondering at the strange assortment on the list.

I believe it is items that are imported so they don't affect British farmers etc and already had high tax so the reduction is actually making them a more reasonable amount of tax rather than low tax. This is what I found when I googled it anyway.

I thought most of our garlic came from the Isle of Wight?

Apart from chocolate I don't eat sweets, I can't stand marmalade and gherkins although I do like them aren't an everyday food.

Not a very profitable choice for farmers. Importing mass produced garlic is cheaper and can be available all year. It'd be seasonal if grown here.

They bleach it to kill bugs, stop it sprouting and make it look more appealing because it's whiter.

But yes an individual could easily grow their own for their own use. I actually think there should be a lot more encouragement for people to look at growing their own crops with the cost of living crisis. I, unfortunately, have no outside area and have a particular talent for killing any kind of plant in existence so it's not an option for me. Local councils should be looking at community projects where crops could be grown and shared. There are a lot of things people could grow themselves if they knew how to get started. We've become so accustomed to everything being available in shops. 

That's ridiculous. Surely it's easy to grow? I left a few cloves in a recycling box I use for lettuce and had several heads the following year. What on earth do they 'bleach' garlic for?

That's ridiculous. Surely it's easy to grow? I left a few cloves in a recycling box I use for lettuce and had several heads the following year. What on earth do they 'bleach' garlic for?

Not a very profitable choice for farmers. Importing mass produced garlic is cheaper and can be available all year. It'd be seasonal if grown here.

They bleach it to kill bugs, stop it sprouting and make it look more appealing because it's whiter.

But yes an individual could easily grow their own for their own use. I actually think there should be a lot more encouragement for people to look at growing their own crops with the cost of living crisis. I, unfortunately, have no outside area and have a particular talent for killing any kind of plant in existence so it's not an option for me. Local councils should be looking at community projects where crops could be grown and shared. There are a lot of things people could grow themselves if they knew how to get started. We've become so accustomed to everything being available in shops.