Fairtrade is about guaranteeing a minimum price to third world producers. This price ensures a level of sustainability to those small producers and their linked communities and also covers the cost of research and investment into improved practices.

Fairtrade has created a level playing field for the suppliers of coffee, tea, sugar, honey throughout the developing world. Budgens offers product lines in each of these areas.

This label on meat and poultry products easily identifies them as British from origin – i.e. the meat is reared in Britain not simply imported from abroad, processed in Britain and passed off as British.

This strong Budgens belief is widely supported by customers who are happier to buy British produce, support local agriculture and see a reduction in food miles. It is also a policy backed by both farmer representatives and food campaigners.

Food Smiles is an organisation with which Independent Lightwater Budgens is enjoying an increasingly strong relationship. Lightwater Budgens food philosophy concurs with Food Smiles policies – in a nutshell bringing the consumer and producer closer both geographically and culturally. Please visit Food Smiles’ excellent website where you will see the great overlap with the key messages from this site.

Take a look at our Suppliers page (link). This page graphically represents the location of some of our suppliers. Not only that it highlights the diversity, expertise and genuine commitment to quality of these carefully selected suppliers.

The vast majority of the population don’t want GM ingredients in their food.

Budgens range of products is completely free from GM ingredients.

Organic food is produced according to a set of principles and standards concerning such issues as pesticides, additives, animal welfare and sustainability. The main accreditation body to look for in the UK is the Soil Association.

Sales of organic products make up an ever growing slice of sales each year.

Organic food are usually slightly more expensive primarily due the more labour intensive nature of production. As with Fairtrade products, Budgens offers organic alternatives where possible on most lines.

Monosodium glutamate will soon be a thing of the past as far an Budgens range of products is concerned. New products do not contain MSG and it is being removed from existing products. Similarly, Budgens has taken heed of the recommendations of the Government’s Food Standard agency and is successfully reducing salt levels in its foods.

Lightwater Budgens stock a Weight Watchers range of products.

They are clearly labelled with the Weight Watchers branding.

Please refer to the Budgens site for Musgrave \ Budgens official published Environmental reports.

Obtaining the recommended 5-a-day fruit and veg quota is made simple with the great variety in store.