Buy Welsh, a phrase that could have such huge benefits.
Welsh Country has always supported small independent businesses whatever they provide be that goods or services, whether the goods are food, drink or the creative arts.
We have decided that we want to emphasise support for Buy Welsh for the whole of 2023.
A phrase that is so often trotted out is ‘buy local’. But what is meant by buy local or even buy Welsh?
Many people say ‘I only buy from a business that is within 20 miles of my home’. But where do those retailers buy from?
Starting with the arts we are not aware of any artists’ paints that are made in Wales, and apart from a very limited amount of woollen products, many textiles are made either in the rest of the UK, or more often abroad.
Looking at drinks, we are not aware of any tea, coffee, citrus fruits, or hops grown in Wales so the vast majority of Welsh drinks may be made in Wales but many of their primary ingredients will be sourced from outside Wales.
Considering food the two Welsh staples, which many consider as Buy Welsh, Welsh Cakes and Bara Brith, cannot be made without dried fruit or sugar, neither of which are grown in Wales.
So what are we wanting to help promote?
We appreciate that this is not local but taking research done by Hammersmith and Fulham Borough Council, for every £1 spent at a small or medium sized business, £0.63 stays invested in the local economy, far more than the £0.40 when you shop at a larger company.
There is no reason why these figures if we all buy Welsh, also correlates in Wales.
If every adult (3 million Source ONS) in Wales spent £5 a week at a local independent business, £780m would be spent and then £490m will be reinvested into our Welsh economy, which is just more than the whole budget for the Welsh Rural Affairs for 2023 – 24. Source: research.senedd.wales/financial-scrutiny/
Yes, shopping locally can make that much difference.
Looking at a slightly expanded picture. As suggested above, local retailers tend to purchase more products from local producers, which in turn keeps local farmers, manufactures and service companies in business. This collectively keeps people employed and can grow the number of local jobs, which obviously creates a better and more prosperous community in which everyone can benefit from.
Another aspect of purchasing locally, Buy Welsh, is that people travel less distance and often walk or cycle to do their shopping, significantly reducing the amount of air pollution and traffic congestion –which is of benefit to your local environment. We so appreciate that Wales does not have an extensive public transport system bar possibly the area of south east Wales. Also, the more locally sourced produce equals fewer transport miles which drastically reduces the amount of CO2 emissions. Unnecessary food transportation contributes to over 35% of the UK CO2 output.
One argument that is often levelled at shopping from local businesses is that it is more expensive.
Looking at this from an arts point of view, buying a Sir John Kyffin Williams painting is always going to be expensive, but Wales has so many talented artists and crafters and their quality is superb, plus you are buying an individual piece.
Using food as an example, croissants from St Dogmaels Local Producers’ Market may be more expensive than the supermarkets, but are far larger and I am guessing that pence per gram would prove better value for money.
Another food example is that of meat. Taking ‘dry cured’ meat compared to pre-packed ‘wet cured’ meat from say supermarkets. The ‘wet cured’ meats will shrink on cooking, far more than the traditionally aged meats. That does not even take into account the taste and flavour.
This is just the start of many articles with many great examples of those that Buy Welsh so please do come back and read more.
