As spring melts into summer and the sunshine finally arrives, people across the UK are eating alfresco, relaxing outside cafes, chilling out in pub and restaurant gardens. And thus arrives one of life’s enduring mysteries to torment us all over again: why does food taste better eaten in the fresh air? We have no idea. Do you? Here’s the news.

Mischievous dogs’ attempted bread theft foiled

When a couple of waggy black Labradors were caught in the act nicking bread from the shelves at a petrol station in Hertfordshire, staff intervened. They made an appeal on social media and the dogs were quickly reunited with their owner.

Everything was caught on camera, and you can’t help laughing when you see the naughty pair browsing the shelves near the dog food section before stealing a loaf. Clearly they are dogs with good taste. They were on their way out of the store with their booty when they were apprehended. You can watch the fun here.

Inside Gwyneth Paltrow’s ‘Wellness Bread’

Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop brand has got into bed with Oat Bakery in California to make so-called ‘Wellness Bread’. We’re not entirely convinced that the words ‘goop’ and ‘bread’ should be placed anywhere near each other but hey, that’s show business.

Apparently the bread is Vegan, grain-free, gluten-free and oil-free, leaving us wondering what it actually does contain. Air? Magical invisible stuff?  No, it’s a blend of almond flour, buckwheat, arrowroot and chia seeds. It’s probably really nice, if pricey at over £20 a pop.

So is the bread really better for you? It’s complicated. But as registered dietician Julia Perlman said, while it offers a grainless alternative to sensitive and allergic people, the word ‘wellness’ is misleading. The quality and type of ingredients mean it’s healthy, but saying ‘wellness’ on the label doesn’t make it any better than any other nutritious bread. And regular bread isn’t inherently unhealthy anyway.

Perlman’s advice for those seeking bread with a high nutritional value? “When choosing a nutritious bread, prioritise 100% whole wheat or 100% whole grain options over refined white breads.”

Kindness in South Africa

The life coach, video maker and South African philanthropist BI Phakathi has more than a million and a half followers on YouTube alone. Loved for his random acts of kindness and humanity, he spends his time helping the poor and needy, sharing his experiences on social media to inspire others.

Recently BI found an old man searching the gutter for scraps of rubbish to sell so he could buy bread. BI didn’t just buy the guy a loaf. He added a cold drink, sandwiches and crisps, then handed him a bundle of 100 Rand notes.

How climate change affects the food chain

As a company totally devoted to being as sustainable and green as possible, aiming to become CO2 neutral before too long, we’re all too aware of the risks climate change poses to the world’s food chain.

As the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation explains, “Extreme events attributed to climate change are becoming more frequent, severe and unpredictable. Such events not only impact food security by adversely affecting agricultural production and yield, and disrupting supply chains, but they also affect food safety.

Elevated temperatures, alternation of severe drought periods and heavy rains, soil quality degradation, rising sea levels and ocean acidification, among others, have serious implications for various biological and chemical contaminants in food by altering their virulence, occurrence and distribution.

This increases our risk of exposure to foodborne hazards. In addition, rapid globalization of the food supply chains facilitates amplification of foodborne hazards along the way providing opportunities for local foodborne incidents to become international outbreaks.”

Kenya’s unpopular plans for a new bread tax

Bread is a staple food the world over. Now people in Kenya being faced with a new government tax on bread. Many say it’ll place an extra burden on the country’s already cash-strapped citizens.

It’s all down to the unpopular Finance Bill 2024, which proposes to reclassify the supply of ordinary bread from zero-rated to standard-rated, sending the price of the staple food Kenyans depend on rocketing.  There are increasing demands for the government to keep bread zero-rated so the people suffering from Kenya’s cost of living crisis – basically almost everyone – can still afford it.

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