Lockdown Blog #4: Think local, shop local, drink local
It means a lot to all of us at Bellfield to be part of a vibrant, local ecosystem of other breweries, pubs, shops and small businesses.
The pandemic has thrown that solidarity into even sharper focus and encouraged it to blossom.
We’re more interdependent than ever as neighbours, businesses and communities.
Since the start of Lockdown, not a week has gone by without us finding another local partner, many of them food and drink businesses that have pivoted to offering online purchase and delivery services, as a way of trying to survive, protect jobs and keep their wonderful staff and suppliers working.
We’re certainly eating more locally-produced food & drink and being reminded just how good it is, even if it costs a little more than it does in a big supermarket.
And when people come to collect beer from our yard, many tell us how much they’ve enjoyed discovering and buying from local, independent shops on their lockdown walks and how they plan to keep up these changed shopping habits when it’s all over.
Judging by the conversations, there seems to be an even greater interest in where our food and drink comes from, how it is grown and produced and by who.
So we’d like to take this opportunity to highlight some of the fantastic Edinburgh-based businesses we’re now working with and we’d love you to support them.
Whether you buy beer direct from a local brewery, freshly prepared meals from a closed restaurant business, or your veg and basics through a ‘box’ scheme like our friends at The Beach House and Three Birds, every bit of money you spend locally is helping to ensure that we will all still be here when Lockdown ends.
Edinburgh Beer Box - a one-stop-shop for mixed cases from Edinburgh breweries and at the same time, a fundraiser for the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Covid appeal.
Edinburgh Lockdown Economy - a website listing lockdown activities, services & products from local independent businesses.
Sip Scran Support - a platform for independent home-delivery services of delicious food and drink, plus support for food banks and other community initiatives, all in one place.
Edinburgh Booze Delivery - a "no-contact" off-licence delivery service to the city of Edinburgh, set up to give closed businesses a route to market and re employ people from the hospitality sector.
Schop - an easy and eco-friendly alternative to a supermarket shop, offering food and drink from a range of independent shops. You just tell them what you want, when you want it and it’s delivered to you, in reusable, compostable or recyclable packaging.
“Despite the obvious disruption caused by Covid-19, it’s great that so many local, Edinburgh-based food & drink businesses have pulled together. As a society we have an opportunity to reassess how we were living and perhaps to re-focus on what is genuinely important in life; great quality food and drink, a cleaner environment and more sustainable living practices." [Tim Roads, founder]
Keep Edinburgh Thriving - offer an ever-changing selection of new food, drink, skincare & lifestyle products. You can choose a gift box to send to a friend, or you can treat yourself. What's in the box is a surprise until it arrives.
“The boxes have brought the community together - a marketplace for small local businesses and a gift for our loved ones we are missing. The passion and dedication put into each one of the boxes makes me very proud to be from Edinburgh where there’s so much great local talent to fill them with.” [Holly, founder]
Secret Takeaways in Edinburgh - pubs, restaurants and cafes offering takeaways that you may not know about!
So please #shoplocal and #SupportSmallBusinesses where you can.
And please “think local and drink local”: buy your beer from Edinburgh Beer Box or from local bottle shops where you’ll be spoiled for choice: Appellation Wines, Cornelius, Cork and Cask, BeerHive and Fine Wines – to name just a few in Edinburgh. They’d welcome the support too.
Or buy direct from our friends at other breweries - check out:
- Barney’s Beer
- Campervan
- Edinburgh Beer Factory
- Jump Ship Brewery
- Pilot Beer
- Stewart Brewing
- Top Out Brewery
- Winton Brewery
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