OF&G :: The blog

We’re very excited at OF&G towers (eh?) about the launch of our snazzy new compostable carriers.

These are bags made from corn starch (corn grown on otherwise unproductive land!) which will start breaking down in a matter of weeks when composted. They’ll also disintegrate within a matter of months if released into the environment - unlike traditional plastic that takes hundreds of years.

After a lot of investigation into pros and cons by our unstoppable research officer, Stephen Jacobs, the bags we can now offer are a much better alternative to the traditional plastic carrier - and a type of bag that’s even an improvement on our previous degradable bags (which were a small step in the right direction).

We do accept that these are still not a perfect solution - is there one? Like anything, they will struggle to break down in landfill, but if they serve to encourage more homeowners to fill them with peelings and apple cores and drop them in the compost bin, we’ll be achieving a lot.

Don’t just take our word for it though. The news of the launch is being embraced by a number of publishers. Take a look, for example, at Natural Products or NewConsumer.com or read our own news release here.

The bags are available to anyone, not just licensees, so if you want to get your hands on some, follow this link…

Defra appears to have the perfect payment method - the debt that need never be repaid! According the Guardian the department managed to spend £230 million more than its actual pocket money from the Treasury. Apparently it was the only Government department to achieve this feat for the period 06/07.

A department spokesman is reported to have said: “The budget for 2008-09 has not been reduced by any clawback of over-allocations in previous years.”

Now that’s the kind of loan we’d all love to have!

Read the original story here.

…get your facts straight!

Opponents of organic love to trot out ‘facts’ that attempt to detract from the plain-as-the-nose-on-your-face realities or organic systems.

So when Robert Johnston decided to ‘explode’ the ‘five myths’ about organic food on The First Post website there was something of a stir created.

Fortunately a comprehensive rebuttal has now appeared on that same website courtesy of the Soil Association’s Robin Maynard. We’re posting this here because it’s a neat and fairly painless way to re-cap both sides of the argument ready for the next time you’re challenged in the pub!