eG foodblog: CheGuevara - A sourcing journey through Europe

[CheGuevara]

Off we go to the last the market has to show us, the flower pavilion. This is not my area - you'll notice by the number of pictures and the little text to follow!

In we go:

The smell is amazing, and there are far more women in here than elsewhere in the market. This is the view of the main hall:

One of the stands:

On my way out I saw these baby pink pineapples - super weird...anyone seen these before?

More than enough for a food blog

Franco

Edited October 26, 2007 by CheGuevara (log)

[Marigene]

What a fantastic blog!

[CheGuevara]

We can't say good-bye to Rungis without having a peak at the garbage disposal unit. It is one of the first things you see as you approach the market from the motorway; however, your view is partially blocked so you only get a glimpse...enough though to realise the magnitude of the operation here.

This is serious - and not the full picture of things.

From here I had no choice but head back to the office, in any case the memory card was as exhausted as I was, and the thought of photoshopping all these images was daunting. As always, more meetings needed tending to - Christmas shop plans and the like, sometimes I wish i could delegate my meetings as well.

This morning was not nearly as exciting, but hang on as soon you'll see the London version of Rungis, mighty New Covent Garden Market - "the larder of london" or as it has been recently re-branded "the market of choice". The thought that someone somehwere in that organisation actually approved the change as part of a master growth plan is beyond hilarious - it is a insult to management academics from Smith to Porter.

Franco

Edited October 26, 2007 by CheGuevara (log)

[MarketStEl]

"The _________ of choice" is another American import, AFAICT. I have a savings account with the Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union in the Philly 'burbs; as you can see, they call themselves "The Credit Union of Choice!" Both of the universities where I have worked over the past few years either called themselves or had as a goal being "an employer of choice". Just wait a few years; soon that phrase will have spread throughout Britain. At least you won't have to worry that it will have lost its meaning, as it is relatively free of substance to begin with.

I doubt any French wholesale or retail food market would call itself "le marché de choix" -- or perhaps more accurately, given the sense in which the English word is deployed, "le marché de préference."

Those pictures from Rungis were fabulous -- but they also strike me as simply addressing the artisanal/industrial divide from the opposite direction. Phrases in your post like "pallets of Brie" bring the contradiction to the fore. Perhaps your avatar is more apt than I thought: it would take a more radical reordering of society than a mere instillation of appreciation for food could accomplish to bring about the sort of change that would eliminate this dichotomy.

This is a fascinating, fascinating blog. I too am enjoying this behind-the-scenes tour.

[CheGuevara]

No time this morning yet to post the pictures from London, will do so when I get back. Morning was late today and the cappuccino here in Maida Vale is quite awful - now we're off to meet some friends at the Tate...upon my return I promise to continue our journey through London's gastronomical innards.

Franco

[CheGuevara]

Wow! Are there such markets in the US? I assume so, but not of the same size?

This is really terrific to have an "industry insider" blog.

Can anyone answer this? I'd be very interested to visit...all I saw while living in the US is Fulton Fish Market in lower Manhattan.

Franco

[rooftop1000]

The Fulton Fish market has moved to the Bronx...Hunts Point is the big commercial market over here. Meat Fish Veg ...everything is relocated there now,

So says my hubby the refrigeration tech

tracey

[CheGuevara]

Not much time has passed between arriving in Waterloo on Thursday morning from Paris, stopping by the office dinner and bed, that I'm now entering New Covent Garden market before sunrise. The new sign demarcating the entrance is birghter, cleaner, greener and backlit but it does little towards improving the perception as you pass through the five available tolls.

It's Friday today, traditionally one of the busiest if not the busiest day for markets. The logic is straightforward - wholesale markets are close on Saturdays and Sundays while restaurant activity is highest over the week-end, thus Friday is the last day to stock up on produce for the busy period. You wouldn't guess from the level of activity in here. On motorway to Rungis you run into more semis than inside NCGM.

One of the representative characteristics of a wholesale market is the frenzy and activity being conducted in the barely waking day. It's like a mad rush of last minute negotiations and preparations to meet the approaching deadline; in this case the waking of a city of millions and the food needed to fuel this beast. Every corner shop, sandiwch and salad franchise, catering company, museum restaurant, ready meal production facility, school cafeteria, boardroom restaurant and pub in town is desperate for raw materials...and they all need them well before the city is truly awake.

London is larger than Paris, 8 million vs. less than 4 million inhabitants, yet the respective markets don't follow the same proportional difference in size. Quite the contrary. Images sometimes do work better than words...this is a view of one of the halls in NCGM:

Can you guess which one is which?

London's larder as it was previously called, is a puny, depressive and dirty place. Everything from the quality and choice of the produce available to the stench which is present near the arches is possibly perfectly aligned with the current situation and culture of food in the UK. I've photoshopped two images together in order to give a better picture of the overall size of the market, made up of two main halls (A+B and C+D) and one smaller hall called the Pavilion.

The Pavilion is in a dire state. This picture is near closing time; nevertheless the majority of the available stands here have gone out of business.

On the complete opposite end of the market from the Pavilion, this image depicts the level of acitivity present:

I've often wondered about the comparisons which are so easily made between the European wholesale markets I've visited, and I continue to do so each time. It seems disturbingly clear that given the market's role as the first stop post production in the food chain, a comaprison at this level gives us a powerful insight into a society's cultural affitinity towards food. How elese do you explain that arguably the world's capital for the 21st century has NCGM as its main fruit & vegetable market? What does the gap between Rungis and NCGM tacitly imply? It certainly says nothing of income disparity, quite the contrary as London is by far the wealthiest city in Europe; where else does an unbuilt penthouse sell for USD 170 million? There is no welath gap but rather a super strong middle class; possibly the biggest in Europe.

Let's move on and look at the vast choice and quality available; we are as the sign outside told us in "the market of choice".

A classic in this market, wonderufl floor displays:

Plenty of peppers - all of them are guaranteed to be the same size, available in three colours. I think soon a fourth colour is being introduced to replace the poor-selling orange varitey. Blue might be in the works just like m&m's.

The selection of tomatoes on offer is unrivalled anywhere else:

Vine tomatoes

Sensational tomatoes

The good old beef tomato - present in most London burger joints

Why are we wasting time and energy growing, selling, distributing, processing and eating this?

Remember the salads in Rungis? Although I've chosen the worst of the lot here for comparisons, it is still quite telling:

While making my way around hall B, the only other hall where wholesalers are active aside from the decrepit Pavilion, I came across the latest entrant. On one hand it is a good sign to finally see someone new rather than the more common "someone less"; unfortunately it happens to be a Dutch importer, and their pallid tomatoes.

This is Charlie whom I ran into at L'Orto di Sorrento, one of the wholesalers. He is a buyer for one of the restaurant suppliers here.

The vast majority of what is on offer at the market looks like this:

Peaches

Seedless Black Grapes

Galia Melons

Cox Apples

There is one stall where you can find decent to very good produce - this is it though. You can see Borlotti beans, leafy lemons, etc.

It is evident that wholesale markets are losing relevance as food consumption follows the US model of highly porcessed foods and fresh produce which is industrially farmed to fit the supermarket distribution model. It is worth mentioning that supermarkets source direct from major producers and "cooperatives". The market in the UK is maintained almost exclusively for the catring/restaurant trade.

In the UK roughly 80% of food sales occur in the supermarket, these levels are only seen in the US. This is not the only similarity between the two countries; obesity is on the rise here especially amongst young children, ready meals and processed foods account for an ever-increasing percentage of food consumption, it is cheaper to eat at a fast food joint than at home, and portion sizes are on the rise (walkers crisps introduced the big grab a few years ago and is slowly becoming standard). New Covent Garden Market is to me a perfect reflection of the local food culture and trends. There is no other way to rationalise the discrepancy between population size plus GDP and the state this market is in.

One of the beautiful images from within the market is a building which faces it.

Franco

[jumanggy]

Beautiful. I'm so jealous.

I've seen tiny pineapple in unusual colors, but if I'm not mistaken they were just used for ornamental purposes. (Though I suppose it wouldn't have hurt to taste one.)

[MarketStEl]

Do I detect a note of sarcasm in your description of the offerings at New Covent Garden Market?

Not much of a choice, if you ask me.

So where do the good restaurants in London get their produce from? Surely they do better than this? Perhaps they have contracts with local farms, as some US restaurateurs do?

British food has long had a lousy reputation. I recall reading a passage cited in one of George Will's (conservative columnist widely syndicated in US newspapers) columns that went something like this: "In Heaven, all the cooks are French, all the cops British, all the mechanics German, all the lovers Italian, and all the organizers Swiss. In Hell, all the cooks are British, all the cops German, all the mechanics French, all the lovers Swiss and all the organizers Italian." It strikes me that an online operation like yours would represent a general elevation in the quality of British food. While America's common culinary traditions aren't held in as low repute as those of England have been, neither does the country have a reputation for fine cuisine matching that of France, Italy, Spain or even Germany. Perhaps these facts may help account for the parallel paths the US and UK have taken regarding the production, distribution and consumption of food?

Perhaps you might at least be thankful that TGI Friday's hasn't replaced the British pub, even if most of the latter are owned by three or four major British brewers.

[ludja]

Good luck in your quest to change things, cheguevera, and I'll add my thanks for a fascinating blog!

[lapin d'or]

The comparisons between the french and english main markets are really quite depressing for me and although I had hoped england's 'market of choice' was not so very dull, the pictures speak for themselves.

I think there is a loud but I guess very minority customer base in the uk really looking to source quality ingredients and not just expensive 'comfort labels'. A lot of our organic food supplies do not really offer good quality food, just a feel good factor.

I have been very encouraged by local markets selling really good meat and vegetables and a number of local shops stocking good, locally grown produce and more interestng things - not just carrots, cabbage, marrows and potatoes. There has to be hope but I wonder if the larger markets will recover.

If we are to remain dependendt on supermarkets I wish ours were as good as the french ones. The food available in my local supermarket just seems lifeless - it doesn't inspire you to cook at all. There is something really wrong when your first thought is how can I disguise this, but that is so often how I feel when I shop there. We are due to be offered yet another supermaket in our small town- so that there is more choice. I do not understand where this choice is coming from - not the produce.

Fantastic blog Franco.

[CheGuevara]

Do I detect a note of sarcasm in your description of the offerings at New Covent Garden Market?

Not much of a choice, if you ask me.

What gives you that impression? I was certainly able to restrain myself less than I first though. This time around as I came with an eye for research and reportig the disappointement was far greater. The thoughts have been with me for a few years, since I first visited the markets, but I've never had to record them and express them in written form.

So where do the good restaurants in London get their produce from?  Surely they do better than this?  Perhaps they have contracts with local farms, as some US restaurateurs do?

You wouldn't believe it but the majority comes from here. A few of the restaurant suppliers buy direct, but the majority of the good quality offering comes from three wholesalers. One specialises in French salads, the other I've shown a picture of and he sources in Milan and Rungis, the third sources from Rungis and does a wide assortment.

Concerning local sourcing - yes, more and more now restaurnats are establishing relationships with certain farmers, both produce and catlle. One caveat though; this is only for the best of the restaurants as things stand. It is only because of a select few restaurants that this market still has a life outside industrially produced greenhouse vegetables.

British food has long had a lousy reputation.  I recall reading a passage cited in one of George Will's (conservative columnist widely syndicated in US newspapers) columns that went something like this:  "In Heaven, all the cooks are French, all the cops British, all the mechanics German, all the lovers Italian, and all the organizers Swiss. In Hell, all the cooks are British, all the cops German, all the mechanics French, all the lovers Swiss and all the organizers Italian."  It strikes me that an online operation like yours would represent a general elevation in the quality of British food.  While America's common culinary traditions aren't held in as low repute as those of England have been, neither does the country have a reputation for fine cuisine matching that of France, Italy, Spain or even Germany.  Perhaps these facts may help account for the parallel paths the US and UK have taken regarding the production, distribution and consumption of food?

Perhaps you might at least be thankful that TGI Friday's hasn't replaced the British pub, even if most of the latter are owned by three or four major British brewers.

←

Funny you mention that...I had a t-shirt I bought in the south of france which had the same saying on it. There is no doubt in my mind that culture is at the heart of the problem. The poorest people in Italy, France and even South America eat very well. That is the eat a balanced and varied diet of fresh food, in season, produced naturally - which they cook at home. Culture gives you those results otherwise you end up eating Mc Donald's and supermarket ready-meals in fron of the TV.

Not long ago I saw a program on UK TV on the problems we're discussing here. On the subject of strawberries, Spanish shoppers at the supermarket were given El Santa (most common variety) strawberries from the UK to taste; these were simple people from a small town and they all said the same: "Esto no sabe a nada" - this tastes of nothing. That is strong food culture engrained throught the society - not just for those who can afford it.

Pubs are very dear to my heart as a lover of food and drink. For a non-English it takes a while to understand and appreciate them; once you do they are unique in this world.

I'll leave you with one last thought in question form - you know why it is always said that the quality of life in Europe is better than the US?

Franco

[broadway]

An interesting and educational comparison between Nine Elms and Rungis

In "Rhubard and Black Pudding", a book about Paul Heatcotes restaurant in Longridge by Matthew Fort. It is recounted how Eddie Holmes, a greengrocer from Preston, started buying from Rungis, in what must have been sometime around 1990, to supply "queer gear" for the restaurant. They have 3 deliveries a week, on a regular delivery run, from there supplier. He also gets supplies form local farmers. If the high quality produce is coming from Rungis Nine Elms will only be catering for the lower end of the market, so in some ways I am not surprised by what I see.

[MarketStEl]

"queer gear"?

--Sandy, certain this is also a double entendre in Britain

[Domestic Goddess]

Thanks for a wonderful and informative blog Che. It was nice seeing those fabulous market pics.

[MarketStEl]

Is this blog really over?

I thought we'd surely see more, both good and bad. You are as good at writing and rhetoric(al questions) as you are at knowing what makes good food good, Che.

Thanks a bunch -- I've enjoyed learning from and conversing with you. Drop a line should you find yourself Philly-bound.