Triple Bottom Line inventor asks for a rethink

Serious post alert folks!

Quite a few of you know that here at Re we are interested in the bigger sustainability picture. Whilst we love buying local where we can, and delighting in it, there’s plenty of things that come from further afield. We’re slightly fixated on how larger organisations measure and act on sustainability. Our current pet subject seems is how localised targets are: one company or government gets ‘net zero’ whilst failing to mention the impact on communities elsewhere. This article touches on that. We recommend a read.

John Elkington, who coined the Triple Bottom Line concept originally says also, ‘To truly shift the needle, however, we need a new wave of TBL innovation and deployment. But even though my company, Volans, consults with companies on TBL implementation, frankly, I’m not sure it’s going to be enough. Indeed, none of these sustainability frameworks will be enough, as long as they lack the suitable pace and scale — the necessary radical intent — needed to stop us all overshooting our planetary boundaries.’

Bikes, ferries and trains...

The orange building is my old house on Lantau Island, Hong Kong - part of the reason we do what we do, here at Re

It was only three days ago that I realised just how long I’ve been mindful of the environment. This tiny little house (it was about 30ft long, 22ft high and 11ft wide, was on the edge of fields where vegetables were grown and which appeared at the local market - where we bought them, loose, even the leafy greens . We always always had our own bags with us. Even eggs were bought loose! My friend and flatmate, Sam, was much further ahead on the environmental stakes and taught me a lot. As well as cooking amazing vegetarian food at home when I worked in the city - which I got to by bike then ferry then walking. There were no roads at this end of Lantau, and at that point just one road that travelled along and across the island. It’s remarkable how much you can fit on a bike when you’re practiced at it!

This isn’t to say there wasn’t waste - there was, of course. But when everything arrives either by bike or by trolley, it’s automatically reduced. Ferry coffee and noodles were always in polystyrene cups for example. But we always made sure we cut up any rings that held beer cans together, fearful for birds. It’s remarkable that more than 20 years later we still haven’t solved this particular problem across the board.

India was a similar story - for 13 years I took trains or roads rather than fly. Partly because I loved the 9 hour train to Delhi from Amritsar!

So when I was asked what was behind this shop, I think the answer lies somewhere in the stunning places I’ve been fortunate enough to visit, the long long train journeys, and the endless cups of tea in little clay cups!

What's your recipe?

Did you know that you can make your own recipe in a jar at Re? Because you buy loose produce, you can simply get what you want. We’ve done Christmas cakes, flapjacks, muesli and granolas among others!

If you’re coming along to Towcester Farmer’s Market OR the shop you can leave your containers with us for filling.

And if you have specific things for a recipe, it can all go in one jar - spices, sugar, flour, seeds, nuts and fruit! So bring along your favourite all in one recipe and fill to order :)