UK supermarkets 760

I don't find the range to be any better than Supermarkets in Germany, Spain, France or Canada (all countries I have lived in or visited) German supermarkets are fantastic as are French ones. My gripes are the food miles, the price, the quality and the stranglehold these supermarkets have on local communities and farmers. Where I live for instance, in Wisbech (9 miles) there are 4 supermarkets and no small food retailers in the town apart from a couple of butchers, one has already closed down once and the other specialises in pork products like chitterling and other unusual stuuf from locally free ranged pigs. 20 years ago, when there was only a tiny tesco, the town centre was thriving with fishmonger, greengrocer, 2 bakeries, several butchers , florists etc. Now all there is are estate agents, charity shops and £1 shops. Supermarkets have end the market town.

In Long Sutton a large village 5 miles away, the local council refuses to allow anything other than the small co-op. It is a joy to shop there in greengrocers, chemists,pet shop, butcher and many other small shops. You wander about and have a natter with each shop keeper and pbutt the time of day. If I have my German shepherd with me and cannot take him in, someone will offer to hold his lead for me, or I simply stand at the door, tell the shopkeeper what I want, he selects and brings it to me in a bag and takes my money. The butcher always has a pat and a couple of meat scraps for the dog too. I know which way I prefer to shop rather than in a soulless, muzak filled,warehouse with long aisles, nobody ever about to help if you have a query and worrying about the dog being left in the car outside. Supermarkets are the American way and I personally think this country needs to admire more about our closest neighbours in Europe than bloody America which cares not a jot for the environmental impact of food miles, gobbling land up, killing local communities and offering poor quality but cheap food to satisfy those vastly overweight people. I *hate* supermarkets and am not alone as a search on google shows whole communities protesting agains the planned building of supermarkets in the towns and being overjoyed when they win.More power to then.