There’s an awful lot of work goes in to every dish that I make, but I do it for a reason. I believe that the food we eat can affect so much of who we are. It affects our own physical and mental health. Eating is communal, it connects us to one another. The food we eat affects the environment. It affects our local communities. It’s a political act in and of its self. Choosing what we eat and where we eat can change the world. Hopefully my little Dosa Stall can be a little part of that.
I wanted to offer something that made people feel good. I strongly believe that eating bad food leads to bad moods and poor health. So much of what we consume is bad for us, it’s highly processed, full of sugars, fried, with low nutritional value. How can our minds and bodies work properly when we are filled with rubbish? How can we have more energy when the food we eat makes us feel sluggish and tired?
Where we buy our food is so important. Supporting small businesses is key – I don’t always manage it but I am working towards using as many small producers and local businesses as I can. (I will keep you abreast of my progress). The thing is small businesses tend to support other small businesses and this helps to improve the local economy. The more money you spend locally the more you see it come back in to the local economy, rather than being syphoned off by some big corporation never to be seen again.
So much emphasis is being placed on the packaging that street food traders sell their food in, but another important thing to think about is the packaging our raw ingredients come in. Generally speaking, the packaging our food comes in is generally excessive. I will be on the case this year looking to minimise the waste I create when I create my food. I will be doing this through shopping locally for fruits and veggies, and looking to suppliers with plastic free packaging.
One thing I may struggle with right now is the food miles associated with some of my ingredients. Some of the vegetables aren’t available in the UK depending on seasonality. There’s also the issue of the rice and lentils. Again, I will be working on these things. The more I can account for where my food is from the happier I will be. It’s bloody difficult and it’s a veritable minefield out there. But it is so important to think about the environmental impact of the ingredients.
I’m not perfect when it comes to saving the world, but hopefully the more steps I take in the right direction the more I can do my bit. I think it’s vital that businesses lead the way in fighting climate change, and quite frankly, if little ole me can do, those big massive companies should be able to do it too!
You can see our Sustainability review for 2020 here: https://www.dosalove.co.uk/eco-ethics
If you think that there’s something businesses, including ours should be doing to improve sustainability, we would love to hear from you. Please drop us a line sam@dosalove.co.uk
Here's the Green Man checking up on us to see if we're doing our bit towards the environment....
