Ethical SOUPerStore: The Verdict

Who ever said there is no such thing as a free lunch had obviously never thought of Soup Club!

If you’ve been keeping up to date with last week’s Soup Challenge here at Ethical Superstore you’ll know that five brave souls took up the challenge of preparing and providing lunch for their colleagues one day a week; thus five mouths were fed and they only had to dip into their pocket once.

Not only was last week great fun, but each lunch time was so much more relaxing and enjoyable simply by taking half an hour away from our desks to sit around a table together and share a warm, hearty, homemade meal.

Conversation was flowing, recipes were passed around, and compliments were bounding forth for each chef and every soup. Perhaps most importantly though, in these tough economic times where your ethical purchasing decisions may be put under a little more pressure than usual, we proved that you can eat, and indeed eat well, both on a budget and whilst upholding your ethics.

All soups fulfilled the criteria of having “Ethical Credentials”, whether this was by including locally produced or seasonal vegetables, organic ingredients, or fair trade fodder in their recipes. As well as this, they all scored highly for taste; proving that ethically produced soup, made on a budget does not have to compromise on flavour. Finally, they were all scored at least 2 out of 3 in terms of value for money.

With the cost for each vat of soup (including a side dish in many cases!) averaging out at less than £4, each participant in the Soup Challenge left Soup Club with a renewed vigour to make their own lunch, share their dinner, and produce ethical food safe in the knowledge that it will not only save them money, but will contribute to a sense of relaxation and community come lunch time.

Just to recap, we started last week with John’s Carrot & Coriander, followed by Elaine and her Moroccan Carrot & Lentil, Wednesday’s soup was provided by Ben who made a Spicy Winter Veg, Twanna brought Organic Pea & Bacon to the table and we closed proceedings with Dan and his Spicy Tomato soup.

So, here’s the bit they’ve all been waiting for, as independent adjudicator I can confirm the final scores:

“Taste” category winner(s): Elaine, Ben, Twanna
“Ethical Credentials” category winner(s): Elaine, Ben, Twanna
“Value For Money” winner(s): John, Dan

Overall Soup Challenge Positions:
1st – Twanna
2nd – Elaine
3rd – Ben
4th – John
5th – Dan

Congratulations to all those who took part; it was a great week and a real eye-opener to us all; let’s keep up the good work!

Remember to check out the EthicalSuperstore Flickr for images from the Soup Challenge.

Stay tuned for more ideas and up and coming “Living The Green” challenges here at Ethical Superstore.