Organic in Bristol

I had a very enjoyable trip to Bristol. The train trip is 6 hours but passes through beautiful areas of southern Scotland, the English Lake District and Gloucestershire, an excellent route for birdwatching - I saw lapwings, oystercatchers, Canada geese, kestrels and buzzards among others. I think it is very positive that Soil Association expects us to use the train to travel between Edinburgh and Bristol, every other organisation I've worked for that has an office in Bristol has expected me to fly and I've needed to put in a good argument to be allowed on the train.

On Tuesday evening I met a friend for supper and we went to Bordeaux Quay - the UK’s first eco restaurant to achieve a gold rating under the Food For Life Catering Mark, This scheme, developed by the Soil Association, guarantees customers get a sustainable meal, with standards governing things such as food additives, animal welfare and the seasonality of the produce. For more information visit: www.foodforlife.org.uk/resources/catering. The food at Bordeaux Quay is also very tasty, we had a lovely creamy onion tart with salad and potatoes and I had an amazingly delicious lemon meringue trifle.

I stayed at The Greenhouse, which is a lovely friendly B&B that serves organic breakfasts and has a very affectionate West Highland terrier called Archie.

I also had very productive meetings with my colleagues!