Lip service to food security

FOOD security is a hot topic right now, given the machinations of the Brexit debate, but there's no doubt that some of our supermarkets are paying lip service to making sure that they use British produce.

There was even a recent incidence of Uruguayan beef being 'mistakenly' re-labelled as British, prompting the National Beef Association to write to wholesaler, Booker, to explain why this had happened.

The wholesaler, is owned by Tesco which, to be fair has actually upped its game in stocking Scotch and British products on its meat shelves of late. But the same cannot be said of Asda, which has been shown in our Retail Radar to major on home-grown product in its stores ... hence this week's cartoon!

Not getting it!

SOME farmers just don't get this 'mask thing'. That much was certain when I witnessed two auld Irish farmers visiting Tarff Valley's terrific coffee shop just outside Dumfries.

The pair entered without masks and were politely asked to put one on while they were in the store and cafe, but that they could take them off once seated.

The reply: "But we're ony in fur a cup o' tae?" Nuff said. However, the staff took pity on them, kitted them out with masks and they did as instructed thereafter.

Great locally-produced produce in there by the way!

Masking the truth!

STILL on the subject of masks, I've seen some weird and wonderful face appliances at marts during this pandemic, some of them obviously breed aligned.

With the forthcoming Blackface ram sales in the offing, it will be interesting to see what those old boys out of the hills have been concocting to keep the Covid in/out.

Maybe we should have a prize for the most imaginative face mask?