Co-op to serve-up new-look store in North Camp, Farnborough

Shoppers who live in the vicinity of North Camp, Farnborough who are keen on saving money in a co-operative sense will be pleased by the news that the Co-op is launching a new, improved co-operative convenience store next Monday, 4 September to serve the community of North Camp, Farnborough and the surrounding areas. 

This is after a month-long programme of works and improvements to bring about the improvements. 

The new-look store which is almost 2,800 sq ft in size, is located in Queens Road, North Camp and it will provide over 20 local jobs and will be open between 6am-11pm daily.

North Camp’s Co-op will include hot food an in-store bakery and a Costa coffee dispenser, plus a free-to-use ATM which is installed as part of the Co-Op's aim to provide access to cash in all communities it serves, plus an Amazon parcel collection services and, the online delivery of groceries through Deliveroo and Uber Eats for added ease, speed and convenience.

The store also has an improved back-of-shop storage facility to further enhance the range, choice and availability of all its fresh, healthy products; meal ideas; everyday essentials; food-to-go; Fairtrade goods; flowers; chilled beers and award winning wines; ready meals, pizzas and, free-from, vegan and plant-based products – including Co-op’s exclusive vegan range, GRO. (EDITOR: Even though I'm not a vegan nor even a vegetarian I absolutely love the GRO Onion Bhaji & Mango Chutney Sandwich!) 

Last month, August, the Co-op announced its biggest ever single investment in pricing of £70 million, as it extends its ‘member-only’ pricing across everyday essentials, launching with a list of almost 200 fixed lines including milk, eggs and bread. The move also includes retail price reductions on over 600 lines.

A funding boost is also provided locally via the Co-op’s Membership programme. Membership of Co-op unlocks additional value with personalised offers and Member pricing benefits. Also, Members are rewarded with 2p in every pound they spend on Co-op branded products which is added to their own personal Membership account balance, with Co-op giving the same amount to local causes and, community organisations. So, yes, Co-op Members really can make a difference simply by shopping at Co-op.

Said Irfan Hameed, who is the Co-op Store Manager: “It's very exciting and gratifying to be re-launching North Camp’s Co-op. Our aim is to operate at the heart of local life here and, we are really looking forward to welcoming Members and customers into their new, improved store. We've worked hard to develop the range, choice and added services to create a compelling offer to serve our community, conveniently, with a focus on delivering member-value so the people who own our business, our members themselves, benefit every time they shop in their local Co-op.”

Did you know that The Co-op is one of the world’s largest consumer co-operatives, and alongside Food, Co-op operates Funeralcare; Insurance and Legal Services. Its Members own the business and play an intrinsic part in the governance of the organisation, and enjoy a wide number of benefits including member-only pricing across everyday essentials?

More information about the benefits of Co-op Membership is available by visiting www.coop.co.uk/membership

(EDITOR: I'm just chomping my way through some crisps from our nearest Co-op!)

Asda celebrates a landmark birthday by giving £15m away to customers

Asda has just announced it's going to give away a cool £15m to customers throughout the month of September to mark the first birthday of its hugely popular Asda Rewards loyalty app.

Asda's launched a super and exciting new ‘Spin the Wheel’ game in its Rewards app giving customers a guaranteed Cashpot bonus every time they ‘spin’ during this month, September.

To win their share of the £15m up for grabs, customers only need to spend £5 or more in-store or online, scan their Rewards app and give the wheel a spin. Depending on where the wheel lands, 50p, £1, £5 or £100 will be added to their Cashpots.

The £15m Spin the Wheel bonus is the single biggest giveaway since Asda Rewards launched exactly one year ago. 

Over seven million customers have used the app since its  launch and they've have earned over £200m in their Cashpots, which they can use to reduce their grocery bills.

To celebrate Asda Rewards’ first birthday, from Thursday 21st September to Monday 24th September, Asda will also have a physical version of Spin the Wheel game at fifteen of its stores, including Watford, Derby and Pudsey.

Customers shopping at one of these stores can actually play the physical version of the game and will be in with a chance of winning merchandise and a range of Asda products.

Mark Baxter, who is Senior Director for Loyalty at Asda, said: “We launched Asda Rewards last year to reward customers for the simple act of shopping with us at Asda. Since then, over 7m customers have been earning pounds by buying star products and completing missions.

“At Asda, we're always exploring for  new ways to give back to our customers via our Asda Rewards, so obviously really thrilled to be celebrating its first birthday by rewarding our customers with a guaranteed Cashpot bonus throughout the month of September.”

Rewards provides customers with the opportunity to earn pounds, rather than points, each time they purchase certain products or complete Milestone Missions. (EDITOR: That makes it sound kind of glamorous, like a James Bond assignment!)   

New Asda Rewards users can also be able to take advantage of the First Scan Bonus, until Saturday 30th September.

Customers who download Asda Rewards, sign up for an account, and scan the app before 30th September will receive £5 in their Cashpot, too!

To get started on Rewards, customers need to download the Asda Rewards app and log in with - or create - an Asda Groceries account.

Terms and conditions for ‘Spin the Wheel’ and a full list of products excluded from Asda Rewards can be found on Asda's website - Asda.com.

(Image courtesy Tumisu from Pixabay)

Did you know you can now do your Morrisons shop on Amazon?

Yes, it's true. Though you will need to check for availability in your area.

Amazon Prime members in select areas/cities have delivery options available at no extra cost to them.

Just be mindful that minimum order values do apply and that extra service fees could appertain to some delivery windows.

You can opt for a wide selection of tempting grocery items and these include freshly picked goods from Morrisons - Market Street (EDITOR I love the Morrisons Market Street concept which reflects on the history of William Morrison, the founder of the company who began life as a humble and hardworking street market trader) and the rich and bold flavours with The Best range, Free From and V Taste catering for your dietary needs plus unmissable special offers, too!

Once you have filled your virtual supermarket trolley make you way to the virtual checkout and explore what delivery slots are available to you. 

They can offer same-day delivery windows for up to 24 hours in advance, though this does depend on several factors including your address/postcode and availability of your chosen delivery times/slots.

Just check them out here:- https://www.amazon.co.uk/fmc/m/30001562?almBrandId=TW9ycmlzb25z&ref=morri_dsk_sn_aboutMorris

M&S launches legal challenge against Marble Arch decision

Sacha Berendji who is Operations Director at M&S said: "Today we have launched a legal challenge against the government’s decision to reject our Marble Arch store proposal.

"We have taken this action because we believe the Secretary of State wrongly interpreted and applied planning policy, to justify his rejection of our scheme on grounds of heritage and environmental concerns.

"We find it hugely disappointing that after two years of support and approvals at every stage, we've been forced to take legal action to overcome a misguided agenda against our scheme, and we will be challenging this to the fullest extent possible."

Aldi cuts prices of fruit and veg

Already the UKs cheapest supermarket, Aldi has cut the prices on a range of fruit and veg products.

This week, shoppers can enjoy even cheaper prices on items such as strawberries, tomatoes, potatoes and spinach. 

Fruit and veg items in Aldi’s Everyday Essentials range are included in this latest price drop, which has seen items fall by an average of about 9%.

The move is the latest of in excess of 100 price cuts Aldi has introduced over the past two months.

Julie Ashfield, who is Aldi's MD of Buying at Aldi UK, said: “Every week we're working very hard to make new savings to pass on to our customers and help ensure we always offer them the lowest grocery prices we possibly can.

“We know shoppers are having to make difficult choices at the moment, so we at Aldi are doing what we can to offer the lowest prices possible. That’s why shoppers continue to switch to Aldi from every other supermarket.” 

Consumer group Which? named Aldi as the UK’s cheapest supermarket in July for the 14th consecutive month. On a basket of goods, Aldi was the cheapest supermarket at £71.22, which was £16.02 lower than the most expensive supermarket, Waitrose.

Back to school: Tasty lunchbox fillers for under £2

Making the back-to-school shop more affordable, Asda has lunchbox filler options for under £2.

From tasty sandwich fillings to snackable light bites to keep energy levels up, Asda’s fresh and delicious options are nutritious and affordable, without any compromise on taste, too.

Starting with the staple sandwich, shoppers can bag a loaf of Just Essentials Whole Meal Bread for just 45p or Asda Soft White Medium Bread for 75p. Paired with any of the mix and match cooked sliced meats, and on a 2 for £3.50 offer, shoppers can tailor their tastes to create something affordable and flavoursome.

The 2 for £3.50 offer has in excess of 20 options; including customer favourites Asda Oven Baked Dry Cured Ham (£2.25), Asda Sliced Chargrill Style Chicken Breast (£2.25) and Asda Wafer Thin Honey Roast Turkey Slices (£2.15). With this breadth of options shoppers can always try something new, keeping kids excited about what’s for their lunch.

Perfect size for a lunchbox and to keep energy levels high between lessons or-after school clubs, Asda has a 3 for £1.20 offer on packs of fruit, including ASDA Grapes (50p), ASDA Crisp and Juicy Watermelon Slices (50p) and ASDA Crisp and Juicy Apple Slices (50p).

For cheese lovers, Asda has nifty offers on Mini Babybel Light Cheese Snack (£1.50 for pack of six) and Dairylea Cheese Triangles (£1.25 for pack of eight). For the savoury snackers, the ASDA Southern Fried Chicken Bites (89p) and ASDA Caramel Rice Cakes (£1.10) are the perfect pick-me-up.

No lunchbox is complete without a sweet treat and there are plenty of fruity options available, including Hartley's Strawberry Flavour Jelly Pots (£2 for pack of six) and Soreen Strawberry Lunchbox Loaves Snack Bars (£1.75 for five).

With many of the lunchbox filers being included in Asda’s recent price drop of over 400 products, Asda’s offers mean the back-to-school shop doesn’t have to break the bank. Shoppers can shop the full range of Back to School supplies here https://groceries.asda.com/cat/back-to-school/1215685931218

www.asda.com

Tesco slashes more prices, and this time it’s good news for parents, too

Today, Tesco has  announced another round of price cuts, with prices sliced on over 50 products as it continues to pass savings on to customers.

This time round parents will be set to see some of the biggest benefits, with Tesco slashing the cost of some Pampers nappies by 16% and cutting prices across a range of branded and own-brand baby products from Johnsons Baby Shampoo to Florence and Fred Cotton buds. In total, this week Tesco is reducing the prices of almost 60 products available in its larger stores, with a quarter of the cuts in the baby aisle.

But its not just parents who can make savings. Other products seeing some of the biggest reductions are six packs of Tesco yoghurt drinks (down 17%), Tesco Garlic Mayo (cut by 14%) and Tesco Kind and Pure Facial Cleansing Wipes (reduced by 19%).

This is part of Tesco’s commitment to pass on savings to customers whenever possible. Tesco announced cuts on 500 lines in June and has continued to cut prices on hundreds of products in recent weeks, with a wide variety of products including milk, pasta, cooking oil and broccoli now at lower prices.

Tesco Chief Product Officer Ashwin Prasad said: “We're aware that household budgets remain under pressure, and so I'm really pleased to announce price cuts across a further range of products, including key products popular with young families.

“This latest round of price cuts is just another sign of our commitment to pass on savings to our customers wherever we are able, and we will continue to work with our suppliers to bring down prices on the items that our customers put in their trolley or basket week-in, week-out.”

The cuts are the latest action from Tesco to support customers amidst current cost-of-living pressures. Earlier this month Tesco announced that it was replacing more than 50 branded lines stocked in Express stores with more keenly-priced alternatives (many of them own-brand) to help save shoppers money.

Asia food innovation contest offers students $10,000 in cash prizes

University students from across Asia are being tempted with $10,000 in cash prizes if they can come up with innovative, plant-based food ideas to help grow the region’s market in climate-friendly food and nutrition. 

The competition, called the ProVeg Food Innovation Challenge,which is now in its fourth year, gives students the chance to gain valuable insights into an exciting and fast-growing industry, while channelling their creativity and skills towards solving some of the biggest challenges facing the world today. 

On top of that, there are big cash prizes on offer for the finalists! 

“We really encourage as many university students as possible, from all disciplines, to take part in the Food Innovation Challenge 2023. Not only could they end up creating a great new food for the supermarket shelves and win a lot of money, they could also make a valuable contribution to improving our food system,” Shirley Lu, Managing Director Asia and Chief China Representative at ProVeg International, said. 

“Our food choices have a significant impact on climate change, food security, animal welfare, and health and pandemics and innovative, plant-based foods can offer multi-problem solutions to these issues,” Lu added. 

Multinational companies involved

Every year, the Food Innovation Challenge draws in support from multinational companies to help support students in developing their entries. This year, more companies are involved than ever before. 

Food giants Nestle and Unilever, along with Asian startups Green Rebel (Indonesia), Haofood (China) and Unlimeat (South Korea) are all involved. Green Rebel is a rising star for investors and recently sold into Starbucks in Singapore and Indonesia. 

China's first soybean company listed on the stock market, Zuming Bean Products Company, is also taking part as well as Shuangta, one of the world’s largest plant-based protein manufacturers.

The topics students will work on include plant-based meat, poultry, seafood, and egg from convenience food to snack food and there will be much more in-person interaction with students this year, now that the Covid pandemic is over.

Students who get involved will also be able to experience exciting partner company/factory visits. 

How the challenge works

The challenge is open to students currently enrolled in undergraduate or graduate programmes at universities and colleges in the Asia-Pacific region. Teams must have a minimum of two and a maximum of four people.

Teams can include students from different disciplines and different schools. Students can submit a maximum of two proposals or join a maximum of two teams.

The judging criteria is as follows:

Market potential (30%). The judging panel will look at the projected revenue, profitability, and growth opportunities, taking challenges and available alternatives into consideration.

Feasibility (30%) The panel will look at the feasibility of product (or campaign) ideas, including formulation, manufacturing, supply chain, and distribution.

Product uniqueness (20%). The panel will look for clear explanations of how your project is innovative and different from what is currently available in the sector.

Go-to-market strategy (20%). Entries will gain points for clear explanations on how you would introduce your products to the market.

The deadline for submission of final ideas will be on 20 November 2023. Finalist teams will be announced in the first week of January 2024.

Those wishing to get involved can email student.ambassador@proveg.com with the names and emails of enlisted team members. 

proveg.com

Urban Rhino Gin a Massive Tonic for Rhino Charity

Urban Rhino premium London dry gin has launched a formal agreement to make a UK-based rhino charity, Waterberg Rhino UK, which supports The Rhino Orphanage in South Africa, its main beneficiary.

And if it wasn't for Waterberg Rhino UK then the gin might not even exist. Because it's all thanks to a lunch on “table 8” at a traditional old English pub!

Explains Waterberg Rhino UK trustee Belinda Chaffer: “Just a few short months ago I was delighted to meet Pete Richardson, one of the co-founders of The Rhino Orphanage in the Waterberg , which is a place very dear to our hearts.

“Pete lived in South Africa but came back home in 2018 after ten years during which time he helped establish the orphanage of which he is still an active director.

“During our first meeting, at Table 8 at The Five Bells in Wickham (A wonderful English country pub), I mentioned we have previously been supported by a gin brand and it was a shame the business was possibly closing as the founders were emigrating and had other life challenges facing them.

“Following my introduction, Pete spoke to the guys concerned and the big news is Pete's taken over majority ownership of The White Rhino Gin Company Ltd!”

And now URBAN RHINO premium London Dry Gin is once again available to buy online, with Pete and his team committing to support Waterberg Rhino UK and The Rhino Orphanage in South Africa, with 10% of the profits from sales of the gin.

With only six botanicals, the gin recipe embodies simplicity and high-quality craftsmanship, and every sip of Urban Rhino Gin is a toast to the generosity, fun, authenticity, and the power to be changemakers.

Pete says: “It's thanks to Waterberg Rhino UK Urban Rhino gin can now hopefully flourish and grow, and we do have some lofty ambitions.

“If it wasn't for Waterberg Rhino UK then Urban Rhino gin would probably not exist today, and as a co-founder of the world's first rhino orphanage I'm truly delighted to be able to support the charity and The Rhino Orphanage for all the amazing work it does.”

Please check out these websites: www.urban-rhino.com and https://waterbergrhino.org.uk 

(That's Food and Drink suggests you lay a few bottles down for your Christmas cocktails!)

Salcombe Brewery Co. Celebrates Double Win at the World Beer Awards

Salcombe Brewery Co. is celebrating a double win for its Island Street Porter at the 2023 World Beer Awards. Not only did it win a gold in the porter category, but it was crowned overall 'Country Winner' too, meaning that they judged it to be the best porter in the country.

Says Jordan Mace, who is Salcombe Brewery's MD: “We're obviously thrilled with these new accolades for our Island Street Porter, which has already won a Gold Award from SIBA and a Champion Beer Award from Taste of the West.

"Its burgeoning trophy cabinet is testament to the brew team's hard work, creativity and focus on quality. Not only have they created a beer that has beaten off competition from all over the world to achieve a gold award but, it's also been recognised as the best of its kind in the country, too.”

Island Street Porter (ABV 5.9%) is a carefully crafted, velvety, delicately bitter porter with just a hint of sweetness. Eight different malts combine to suggest the tangs of dark chocolate, coffee and black cherries, while the aroma pleasingly suggests a tasty Black Forest gateau!

The World Beer Awards recognise the very best beers from all over the world. To learn more about the World Beer Awards visit www.worldbeerawards.com.

Award-winning, SALSA accredited Salcombe Brewery Co. produces a range of premium cask ale and keg products at its innovative Estuary View brewery which nestles in the Devon countryside above the world famous Salcombe Estuary. 

Salcombe Brewery's range of beers is available nationwide in pubs and hospitality venues as well as retail outlets and online. For further information on Salcombe Brewery Co. and for online purchasing, please visit www.salcombebrewery.com follow Salcombe Brewery Co. on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.  

(EDITOR: I'd suggest laying a few cases down for the Christmas and New Year's Eve party season!)