BigBarn have recently completed a new online project with the National Farmers Union called NFUSourceDirect.
The project is aimed at wholesale food buyers, such as hospitals, schools and prisons, and encourages them to source local products. By entering a postcode or place name, users can locate their local food producers. Each producer can list their full range of products complete with prices, delivery details, assurance schemes and minimum/maximum orders.
To view the website, visit www.nfusourcedirect.com.

Food colourings used in many popular children’s foods do cause temper tantrums and disruptive behaviour in up to a quarter of toddlers, according to new government research. This is the first time a UK government-sponsored scientific study has corroborated the link between food additives and changes in children’s mood and behaviour.

Research scientists at the UK’s Asthma & Allergy Research Centre, working on behalf of the Food Standards Agency, concluded that ’significant changes in children’s hyperactive behaviour could be produced by the removal of colourings and additives from their diet’. The researchers went further, saying that ‘the findings of the present study suggest that benefit would accrue for all children from such a change, and not just for those already showing hyperactive behaviour or who are at risk of allergic reactions.’

Following the study, the Food Commission has found over 100 children’s foods and drinks containing one or more of the additives called into question by this research.
‘Nearly 40% of children’s foods and drinks contain additives,’ explained nutritionist Annie Seeley of the Food Commission, which publishes the Food Magazine.

‘Colourings are used to make products look especially appealing to children. The colourings tested in this new research are used in familiar children’s foods such as Jammie Dodgers, Smarties, Wagon Wheels, Walkers Football crisps, and Irn Bru and Tizer fizzy drinks. Now that a link between these colourings and disruptive behaviour has been proved, we should remove these additives from children’s foods and drinks.’

Technical note: The food additives were tested on 277 three-year-olds from the Isle of Wight. Many parents reported significant changes in behaviour. The additives tested were the artificial food colourings Tartrazine (E102), Sunset Yellow (E110), Carmoisine (E122), and Ponceau 4R (E124), and the preservative Sodium Benzoate (E211), given in a single drink. The test dose of colourings administered in the trial was well below levels permitted in children’s foods and drinks. For the preservative, the test dose was equal to the permitted level. Children are likely to consumer higher doses if they eat several products that contain these additives.

Food safety chiefs have been heavily criticised for advising people they no longer need wash and peel fruit and vegetables to remove traces of pesticide. Chemical contamination was ’so minute’ it was highly unlikely to pose any health risk, claimed scientists from the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

A spokesman added: ‘If fruit and vegetables do contain residues, consumers can be confident they are only at levels well below those that might be harmful to health.’
The statement overturned decades of advice that washing and peeling because of pesticide use in agriculture should be basic kitchen practice.

The FSA said people could still wash fruit and vegetables for simple hygiene reasons, but there was no need to worry about contamination with chemicals. However, consumer and environmental groups insisted there was no new evidence to justify such ‘irresponsible’ advice. Levels of pesticides on a significant amount of fruit and vegetables sold in Britain exceeded recommended safety limits.

Sheila McKechnie, director of the Consumers’ Association, said any review of the advice on washing and peeling fresh food was premature. She went on: ‘Fruit and vegetables tested still contain pesticide residues. ‘Figures show that 72 per cent of apples and 81 per cent of pears have residues, and it was recently reported that 61 per cent of grapes and 63 per cent of kiwi fruit contained toxic chemicals.

‘the long-standing advice to wash and peel fruit as a sensible additional precaution, particularly for small children, should be emphasised, not scrapped.’ Liberal Democrat Paul Tyler, chairman of the Commons all-party organophosphate group, claimed the FSA advice had been issued under pressure from chemical companies and the food industry before the facts had been established. ‘Less than a month ago the agency told us of the dangerous effects potentially contaminated food could have, particularly when consumed by children,’ added the MP. ‘they set out a comprehensive list of necessary research. However, this has not come to fruition, and the concerns are still extremely valid. ‘to put responsibility back on the shoulders of parents, without clear advice and with official research still outstanding, is madness. ‘there are so many research projects into the risks from OPs and other pesticides still to be completed that it is quite extraordinary for any Government agency to take this unilateral action.’

The FSA said the old advice to wash fresh food before eating could put consumers off by implying there was ’something dangerous’ about it.
The spokesman added: ‘Our advice is that people should eat five pieces of fruit or vegetables a day. With the minute levels of pesticides that would pose no risk to health.’

Professor David Coggan, chairman of the independent advisory committee on pesticides, said the old advice to wash and peel fresh food was a precaution because of uncertainty over safety. He added: ‘there’s been a lot more research conducted since then, and that’s resolved the uncertainty and so we are able to revise the advice.’

Drinking cranberry juice every day could significantly cut the risk of heart disease, scientists have discovered.

A study suggests three glasses a day can raise the amount of ‘good’ cholesterol in the blood, reducing the chances of a range of cardiac conditions by as much as 40 per cent.

The findings add another health benefit to the long list already associated with cranberry juice. Previous studies have shown that cranberries can help prevent urinary tract infections and may reduce the risk of gum disease, stomach ulcers and cancer.

Researchers have also suspected for some time that the antioxidant-rich juice might help lower risk factors for heart disease. But no firm link has been established until now.

Chemists at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania conducted the first long-term study of the effect of cranberry juice on cholesterol levels to settle the question.
Dr Joe Vinson and his colleagues measured cholesterol levels in 19 volunteers who had previously been diagnosed with high cholesterol.

Each subject was given one eight ounce glass of juice a day for the first month, then two glasses a day for the next month, and three glasses a day during the third month of the study.

Levels of ‘good cholesterol’, which is known to reduce the risk of heart disease, appeared to significantly increase by an average of ten per cent after three servings of juice per day.

Dr Vinson, unveiling his finding at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society in New Orleans yesterday, said this corresponds to an approximate 40 percent reduction in heart disease risk.

Meanwhile, levels of antioxidants in the blood – chemicals which counteract the natural process of ageing in the body – increased by more than 120 per cent in the volunteers who were drinking two or three servings a day.

‘this study gives consumers another reason to consider drinking cranberry juice, which has more health benefits than previously believed,’ said Dr Vinson. ‘People should consider drinking it with their meals.’ Dr Vinson said that cranberry extracts, usually in tablet or capsule form, could be similarly beneficial if taken regularly.

A daily banana is a good way of warding off strokes, scientists have found.
An eight-year study of 5,600 men and women over 65 found those with the least potassium in their diet were 1.5 times more likely to have a stroke than those with the most.

As the banana is a useful source of potassium, it can help to reduce the risk of a stroke in old age.Other potassium-rich foods are lentils, oranges and avocados.
Strokes are the UK’s third-biggest killer, with around 130,000 people suffering one each year.

Researchers at the Queen’s Medical Centre in Hawaii defined low potassium intake as less than 2.4 grams per day and high intake as more than four grams per day.
In Britain, the recommended daily dose is 3.5g. The research, published in the journal Neurology, also looked at people taking diuretics.

Diuretics, which are common medications used to treat conditions such as high blood pressure, congestive heart failure and kidney disease, reduce the amount of water in the body. But they can also rob it of potassium. ‘diuretics clearly help prevent stroke by controlling high blood pressure, but we wanted to see whether their effect on potassium levels would affect the risk of stroke,’ said study author Dr Deborah Green. Of people taking diuretics, the research found that those with the lowest level of potassium in their blood were 2.5 times more likely to have a stroke than those with the highest level.

But Dr Green stressed that the results do not suggest that diuretics create an excessive risk of stroke. ‘the question is whether diuretics would be even more effective with adequate potassium intake,’ she said. Neurologist Dr Bruce Coull, a stroke expert at the University of Arizona, said lack of potassium in the diet could be even more significant when added to other conditions that make strokes more likely.
‘Even a slightly increased risk added to other risks could have a large effect,’ he added.
Potassium works with sodium to regulate fluid balance, heart rhythm, nerve impulses and muscle contractions. When potassium levels rise, sodium levels dip.
That means potassium rich foods can help offset the effects of excessive sodium intake, such as fluid retention and high blood pressure. Signs of potassium deficiency include weakness and severe thirst.

One large banana will contain around 500mg of potassium, which means it contributes about one-seventh of the recommended daily intake. As well as being rich in potassium, bananas contain more than a quarter of the daily requirement of vitamin B6.

They are also rich in folic acid, making them an important food for expectant mothers and women trying for a baby. Ripe bananas are also useful in the treatment of both constipation and diarrhoea. And at only around 95 calories per fruit, they also ideal for slimmers in need of an energy boost.

Research proves that fruit and vegetables can protect us from a range of illnesses, from cancer to heart disease.
For this to work, however, we need at least five portions a day. This may sound daunting but, in fact, it is easy to integrate fruit and vegetables into your diet.
For instance, did you know that frozen peas and baked beans both count?
Below, we reveal 15 medical benefits of eating enough fruit and vegetables, and tips to disguise them in everyday meals.

1. The World Health Organisation has found that 85pc of adult cancers are avoidable, and of these, around half are related to nutrition deficiencies in the Western diet – many of which can be rectified by eating those five portions of fruit and vegetables.
2. In the UK, one person dies every three minutes from coronary heart disease, but new research from Cambridge University has found that eating just one apple a day cuts your risk of premature death from heart disease by 20pc. Add one orange and one banana and that increases to 50pc.
3. Minor infections like colds and flu are also less likely if you eat plenty of fruit and veg – particularly kiwi fruit, raspberries, blueberries, red peppers and citrus fruit. These offer the best way to get high levels of vitamin C in your diet – and research shows that people with high intakes of vitamin C have 34pc fewer sick days than others.
4. A study in 1998 showed that a high-fibre diet will protect against breast cancer and prostate cancer. Cabbage, peas, beans, berries and dried fruit are particularly rich sources, but there is fibre in nearly all vegetables and most fruit.
5. Age-related memory loss is one of the most distressing elements of old age, but a 1999 study found that a diet containing the equivalent of half a cup of blueberries a day can actually stimulate the growth of new brain cells, which may prevent memory deterioration.
6. Most of us think only dairy products can help build bones, but dark green leafy vegetables such as broccoli and kale can also provide calcium, while onions stop the process that causes bones to weaken. Studies from the University of Bern in Switzerland found just one gram of onion a day is enough to strengthen your skeleton.
7. Five portions a week of red fruit and vegetables – for example, tomatoes, watermelon and red pepper – can reduce the risk of lung cancer by a quarter.
8. Research at the University of Arizona has shown that a daily intake of five to ten portions of red, yellow or orange fruit and vegetables can reduce skin cancer risk by forming a UV protection layer under the skin.
9. According to the world’s largest study on successful weight loss, focusing on a diet high in fruit and vegetables is a vital factor in losing weight and keeping it off. This is not surprising when you think that a 2-3tbsp portion of most fruit or veg contains just 50 calories – the same as five potato crisps or half a chocolate biscuit.
10. A high intake of fruit and veg has been shown to lower the risk of stomach cancer. A Swedish study on sets of twins found that a twin eating a high intake of fruit and vegetables had a 5.5 times less risk of stomach cancer than their brother or sister who did not eat a high intake of fruit and vegetables.
11. Research shows that compounds in cranberries and blueberries stop bacteria sticking to the inside of the urinary tract and so help prevent infections like cystitis from taking hold. A handful of blueberries or a glass of cranberry juice a day can cut frequency of attacks by 58pc.
12. Eating two-and-a-half carrots a day has been shown to lower cholesterol by 11 per cent in three weeks in Scottish studies. High cholesterol is one of the major risk factors in heart disease.
13. A 12 year American study showed a significant reduction in strokes among people who consumed a high level of potassium. Fresh fruit and vegetables – particularly bananas, grapes, leeks and cabbages – all provide plenty of potassium.
14. Eating fewer than one-and-a-half portions of fruit and vegetables a day increases your risk of cataracts – the major cause of blindness in the world – by 600pc. Spinach helps prevent cataracts and prevents agerelated macular degeneration – the commonest cause of blindness in people over 55.
15. Studies show that people who eat diets high in fruit and vegetables that contain vitamin B6 (such as bananas and avocados) find it easier to handle stress than those who did not.

Higher vegetable consumption would reduce the risk of colorectal cancer and gastric cancer. There was also weakly consistent evidence that higher fruit and vegetable consumption would reduce the risk of breast cancer.
Higher consumption of fruit and vegetables also reduces the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke. A recent study found that each increase of 1 portion of fruit and vegetables a day lowered the risk of coronary heart disease by 4% and the risk of stroke by 6%. Evidence also suggests an increase in fruit and vegetable intake can help lower blood pressure.
Research suggests that there are other health benefits too, including delaying the development of cataracts, reducing the symptoms of asthma, improving bowel function, and helping to manage diabetes. Some fruit and vegetables are also good sources of folate (such as green leafy vegetables and oranges). All women of childbearing age are recommended to increase their consumption of foods naturally rich in folate and foods fortified with folic acid. Women who are trying to conceive or who are likely to become pregnant are advised to take a daily 400microgram supplement of folic acid until the 12th week of pregnancy.