David Cameron's Diary

I had to laugh in the last week - one day we hear about plans to install metal detectors in schools to prevent knives etc being taken into the building.

Then a few days later to hear that all Secondary school pupils are to receive practical cookery lessons.

Pray tell....how are the kids going to cook without knives and other kitchen paraphernalia? or are we going to have a second set of metal detectors outside the domestic science classrooms?

There is a serious point though and the truth is that a new generation is growing up unable to cook anything other than microwave meals. To my mind, this arises because over the last 20-30 years or so we have seen both parents out at work and supermarkets found it easy to present a new offering in ready prepared meals.

The cooking skills are no longer being passed down through families and this has been compounded as the skills were not taught via schools either.

I welcome the transparency that we have seen recently on TV, with a sequence of programs dealing with the rearing, slaughter and butchering of our livestock. Supermarkets have sterilised the meat process and with the disappearance of our local butchers, youngsters don't get to see the carcasses being jointed for our meat.

We do need to get back into the kitchens and get back to basics removing the fear of cooking.

Cooking good honest food is not difficult - just a bit of care and attention.........and good ingredients.

I have recently launched a new website with the aim of introducing suppliers of good honest ingredients and giving honest critiques of their offerings and linking to the kitchen tools that you need..... Food with Passion is the site. An additional aim is to prove to myself and to others that home cooking is best.

There is a forum available to chat about food and your favourite suppliers, but to be frank, the take-up of membership is quite slow. It would be great to discover new suppliers of quality produce on our doorsteps. If you are interested in something other than humdrum quality supermarket ready meals and inferior meats, please stop by the forum or the main site and help the site grow to be a great reference stop by sharing your local food producers.

Labels: Food Heroes, Food with Passion, premium food, Slow Food, specialist food

****** Offer withdrawn meantime due to software glitches at Majestic. They hope to reintroduce soon. ******

It looks like the credit crunch is hitting retailers. Because I am an affiliate for them on one of my sites, I just got an email from Majestic Wine with a discount code.

They say that they have never given any discount in the past, so they must be somewhat slow meantime.

Anywhere, here is the message if anyone else wants to take it up. I had a very sober Christmas and still have a decent supply left so will not be rushing out myself.






For the first time Majestic is offering you the chance to save an extra 10% off all your wine*, in addition to our already low prices and FREE delivery! This offer is available exclusively online for one week only until January 22nd, so there's never been a better time to re-stock those wine racks!

Spend £50 - £99.99 online SAVE £5 Spend over £100 online SAVE £10 Discount Code: majesticaw081


*Terms & Conditions: £5 off when you spend £50-£99.99 or £10 off when you spend £100+. Can not be used in conjunction with any other offers. Valid on online purchases only from 15th January - 22nd January. Not valid on telephone or instore purchases or in Majestic in France.
Majestic's minimum purchase is 12 bottles, mixed by any style or price. Free mixed case delivery excludes the Scottish Islands, Northern Ireland, Isles of Scilly and Isle of Man and all Gift Solutions packs. E+OE.

Britain has become a nation of fast and ever cheaper food.

Whilst I recognise that convenience and fast food has some place in the modern world, I do sense that we are bringing up a generation of kids that think milk comes from a supermarket rather than from cows.

I absolutely advocate transparency in farming methods and a darned sight more honesty from supermarkets about the methods they force farmers into.

In a nutshell, David Cameron supports the Chicken Out campaign to move more chickens out of the intensive barn production of meat and eggs.

What were your your buying habits before Fowl Dinners and Chicken run aired this week? Please complete the poll at Food with Passion Forum.

What will be your your buying habits following Fowl Dinners and Chicken run aired this week? Please complete the poll at Food with Passion Forum.

It is great that UK Chicken Farming methods are getting an airing, but I would like to give a plug for Compassion in World Farming.

Whilst Chicken Out's aim is to improve the welfare of chickens within the UK, Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) has a tremendous track record in achieving real change for farm animals across the globe.

They carry out hard hitting political lobbying, investigations that expose cruelty to farm animals and high profile campaigns designed to achieve better standards and happier lives for farmed animals everywhere.

Their vision is a world where farm animals are treated with compassion and respect and where cruel factory farming practices end.

Their mission is to advance the wellbeing of farm animals worldwide.

Why not visit the Compassion in World Farming Site now and see how you can help improve farming conditions across the globe.

Labels: Chicken Out, Free Range, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Jamie Oliver