Thursday 26 January 2012

Win a crate of Simply Nectar

We thought we would draw your attention to our latest competition. That's right folks, you can win yourself a WHOLE CRATE of Simply Nectar just by emailing the good people at Zest Magazine.  You don't have to answer any taxing questions or give any smart slogans, you just have to send a little email and hey presto you're entered into the prize draw.

On this occasion we are giving away a crate of Simply Nectar to TWO lucky winners...that's a total of 40 bottles...20 bottles each.  Yes, we did pass our maths GCSE thank you very much!  You can choose from 20 peach or 20 Citron Presse.  Mmm mmmm.



So what are you waiting for??  ENTER NOW!
http://www.zest.co.uk/forum/forummessages.asp?URN=21&UTN=1079&cp=1&SP=&V=9&a=Zest&msg=3#4885

Simply competitions.

Simply Nectar

Wednesday 25 January 2012

Worldwide celebrations right on our doorstep

When I woke up on Monday morning with no electricity, heating or hot water I thought it was a sign for the rest of the week ahead. I had a very bad feeling that if the week started on a bad foot it was only going to get worse. It turns out I was wrong. Why? Because when I realised the date I knew I was in for a week of treats.

23 January 2012 marked the start of Chinese New Year and this year they are celebrating the year of the Dragon. The next few weeks will be packed with endless celebrations full of colour, fun and amazing food. I may not be Chinese but I love to join in the celebrations and embrace the country and its cultures/traditions. What’s more, I also love the food, conveniently, so I will make sure I eat a lot of it this week.

Courtesy of Kittikun Atsawintarangkul / freedigitalphotos.net

Two days later, i.e. today, it’s Burns Night. Yep, 25 January sees Scottish people around the globe celebrating the birthday of famous Scottish poet, Robert Burns.  All number of Burns suppers take place on this popular day, which may be both formal and informal. Typically they include haggis, Scotch whisky (hurrah!) and the recitation of Burns’ poetry.

If that isn’t enough, 26 January marks Australia Day. Yet more reason to celebrate culture, tradition and of course food, hooray! Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. 26 January commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788, thus marking British colonisation.

Courtesy of Laura Collins

With all these dates in the diary I thought it only right that this post embraces all three countries mentioned above and all the delicious food that comes out of them. I have therefore put together a list of some of the most loved, traditional celebratory dishes from China, Scotland and Australia in a hope that it may inspire you to tuck in and join the party.

Typical dishes eaten during Chinese New Year
Buddha’s Delight – a lavish vegetarian dish made with a wide variety of ingredients, including arrowhead, bamboo, bean curd, black mushrooms, carrot, noodles, daylily buds, fat choy, Ginkgo nuts, Lotus seeds, Napa cabbage, Peanuts, Snow peas, tofu, water chestnuts, wheat gluten and wood ear.

Sweet and Sour Pork  This dish is popular with families hoping for a lot of grandchildren, as the Cantonese word for "sour" sounds like the word for grandchild.

Yusheng  This raw fish salad is said to bring good luck. This dish is usually eaten on the seventh day of the New Year, but may also be eaten throughout the period.

Courtesy of SundayMorning / freedigitalphotos.net
 Jiaozi – Crescent-shaped Jiaozi are a symbol of wealth and prosperity because of their resemblance to ancient Chinese money.  They are eaten at midnight on New Year's Eve.

Niangao (Year cake or Chinese New Year's cake) – A cake prepared from glutinous rice. It is considered good luck to eat Niángāo during New Year because "nian gao" is a homonym for "higher year." The sticky sweet snack was believed to be an offering to the Kitchen God, with the aim that his mouth will be stuck with the cake so he can't badmouth the giver's family to the God of all Gods.

Typical dishes eaten on Burns Night


Scotch Broth
– A thick soup made with carrots, turnips, onions, celery, leek, pearl barley, lamb, peas and kale.

Arbroath smokies – Smoked haddock from the town of Arbroath.


Haggis, neeps and tatties – put simply it’s sheep or calf's offal, swede and potatoes

Courtesy of FreeFoto.com

 
Cranachan – This traditional Scottish pudding is made with whipped cream, whisky, honey, and fresh fruit.

Shortbread and oatcakes –  Quite self explanatory really!


Typical dishes eaten on Australia Day

Aussie pies – Pies filled with meat and potato which are a favourite with Australians the world over

Barbecue Prawns – Any variety of prawns go down well on Australia Day, whether they be plain, cooked in garlic or covered in Piri Piri sauce.  "Slip another shrimp on the barbie."


Courtesy of Sura Nualpradid / freedigitalphotos.net



Beer battered fish and chips – A delicious meal perfect for a lazy afternoon

Anzac Biscuits – A popular biscuit made with oats, desiccated coconut, lemon rind and golden syrup.

Lamingtons – These are a quintessential part of every Australian's childhood. The little sponge cake is dipped in chocolate icing and then rolled in desiccated coconut.

YUM!  So there we have it - a long list of food for a long week of celebrations.  Why not wash it all down with some delicious Simply Nectar too.  Now there's an idea huh?!

Simply celebrations.

Simply Nectar

Tuesday 17 January 2012

Jeremy Jaffe hits the news

We are feeling very proud of our boss Jeremy, who is also one of the co-owners of What On Earth.  Jeremy has been in the news quite a bit these past few days so we have therefore pulled together all of his media coverage to show you just how busy he has been.  Jeremy has been getting his five minutes of fame as he has been involved in interviews with several journalists.  The reason for this is because they have caught on to how successful 2011 was for What On Earth.  (We actually blogged about how good last year was in our previous blog post).  The news of the success was published on:


The story was also discussed in great depth on the International Business Times.  This piece was a favourite of Jeremy’s because it contained a HUGE photo of him!  You can read the article here: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/

After journalists found out about the company's success, other publications were interested in chatting with Jeremy about the organic food market as a whole – in particular, the popular trade publication, Food Manufacture.  As a result of the interview the following article was published….and it’s one in which Jeremy caused quite a stir! http://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk/


Finally, our Jeremy was featured in London’s Evening Standard as he posed a business question to Dragon’s Den star and famous entrepreneur, James Caan.  The letter got published and Jeremy’s name was once again in lights.  You can check out his question here:




Simply famous.

Simply Nectar

Friday 13 January 2012

Bumper year for Simply Nectar and What On Earth

It's been written about on the internet and Jeremy has been giving interviews about it over the phone but we haven't yet told you about it.  Sorry about that folks.  We hadn't forgotten about you - it's just been a busy week.  So, what is the 'it' that I talk about?  'It' is the excellent year we had last year.  Oh yes, 2011 was a magnificent time for What On Earth and Simply Nectar and for this we feel thankful, proud, appreciative, ecstatic, pleased...the list could go on.

Last year alone What On Earth managed to produce more than 15 tonnes of organic dips and almost 200,000 pints of organic soup - almost double the amount of products made in 2010.  The company bucked trends and forecasts and proceeded to have one of the most successful years in operation, despite continual reports on the weakening organic market and the slump in food sales.

Throughout the year What On Earth generated high revenue and managed to deliver over half a million products to customers. Pretty amazing huh?  In total, this included seven tonnes of hummus, five tonnes of mezze and more than three tonnes of babaganoush.  You greedy lot you!  Not that we're moaning of course.  The chefs also managed to cook in excess of 23,000 buckets of soup and more than 16,000 pizzas and pizza bases – a huge increase on 2010. 

Taken from slashfood.com - with thanks

Just add another 16,000 to the pile

The head honcho, Jeremy, is putting the success down to the fact that both What On Earth and Simply Nectar supply smaller, independent stores rather than the large supermarkets.  He thinks we've managed to buck the trends because we work with small, high-end suppliers. It has offered some protection against the rising food prices that are affecting supermarkets across the country you see.  Our products sell in the stores we supply because they aren’t available cheaper in any supermarkets.  Plus you customers are a lot more loyal to the little guys and for that we are truly thankful.

As you know, What On Earth act as a supplier and distributor as well as a manufacturer and there are teams working 24 hours to keep up with demand.  In 2011 the night team, which is made up of just six members of staff, delivered almost 180,000 loaves of bread while the rest of the nation slept.  Impressive hey?   We owe them a huge thank you, so...THANK YOU GUYS.

What On Earth believes that organic is a choice and they make organic food so all of you can have this choice.  What On Earth promise, therefore, to continue making delicious products for as long as you want them.  We will also promise to continue producing excellent Simply Nectar.  It's our New Year's resolution to you.  Jeremy and Rolf started What On Earth in order to put the goodness back in food and to change the way society eats and that is what they are still doing now.  Hurrah. 

Here's to an excellent 2012.

Simply successful.

Simply Nectar

Tuesday 10 January 2012

Shoplifting celebrities over the years

British chef, Antony Worrall Thompson was arrested for allegedly shoplifting at a Tesco store on Friday 6 January 2012.  He is said to have been cautioned for pilfering goods, including cheese and wine, via the self-service checkout area.  The alleged crimes were caught on camera by store chiefs in the Henley On Thames outlet, Oxfordshire.

This recent news didn’t shock us here at Simply Nectar and What On Earth.  It’s not that we expected Worrall Thompson to steal food – far from it in fact – we just weren’t surprised that yet another celebrity was caught taking what wasn’t rightfully theirs…and ultimately not punished properly as a result.  Stealing is against the law – that is drummed into us at an early age but why on earth do some of these celebrities get away with it?  Would Joe Public get away with such crimes we ask?

Looking back over the years, there has been a long line of celebrity thefts; some shocking, some not so.  We therefore thought we’d give you a run down of our top ten favourite light-fingered stars.

Lindsay Lohan’s endless bad behaviour has resulted in large media coverage and even saw the well known actress spend time behind bars.  Over the years Lindsay’s crimes have seen her accused of stealing a $2,500 necklace and for‘borrowing’ Masha Markova’s $11,000 fur coat.

Other largely reported and infamous shoplifting incidences were those of Winona Ryder.  In 2002, Ryder was arrested for stealing £3,000 worth of clothing from a Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills.  Six years later she was allegedly spotted leaving a Hollywood store with make up on her that she hadn’t paid for.

Those are not the only two celebrities to have been caught with their fingers in the till, as it were.  Other big names include:

Peaches Geldof: In October 2011, Bob Geldof’s daughter, Peaches, was allegedly caught helping herself to almost £70 worth of make up from a Boots store in London.  According to reports, Peaches was followed by a plain-clothes Boots store detective as she shamelessly loaded her pockets and shopping bags with what was apparently nearly £70 worth of mascara, foundation and eyeliner.  Peaches had been involved with shoplifting in the past but once again she was let go without charge.

David de Gea: In 2011, the Spanish, Manchester United player allegedly picked up an Original Glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut and ate it in the magazine aisle of a Tesco store before walking towards the exit without paying, or buying anything else.

Gabriela Irimia: In January 2011, Cheeky Girl, Gabriela, was detained after stealing groceries said to be worth about £40 from a Sainsbury's store in Wilmslow, Cheshire.

Adam Rickett: In 2007, the model/actor left a New Zealand supermarket with a block of cheese, a bottle of HP Sauce and a jar of coffee.  He was caught for his actions and although he admitted to the theft he said it was just an "honest mistake".

Glen Johnson: The England football star was reportedly fined by police for trying to steal a toilet seat and bath taps from B&Q in 2007.

Britney Spears: The popular singer was accused of pinching a wig just hours after stripping down to try on a pair of briefs in an adult store in Los Angeles in 2007.  It was alleged that after an altercation with staff, Spears took a wig off a mannequin and left without paying for it.  She has also been involved in several other shoplifting incidences in the years after this one.

Jennifer Capriati:
The three-time tennis Grand Slam champion was caught leaving a Florida shopping mall with a cheap silver ring in 1993.

Well there you have it – ten top celebrities that have been caught shoplifting over the years.  And these are just some of them.  Who knows how many haven’t been caught too – not that we’re making accusations of course!

Word of advice to celebrities…pay for the items next time.  If us law abiding non famous citizens can do it, I’m sure you can too.

Simply shoplifters.

Simply Nectar


Thursday 5 January 2012

New Year's resolutions made simple with Simply Nectar

Happy New Year everyone.  We hope you saw in 2012 in pure Simply Nectar style.  We did of course.  How else would we see it in?!  Now, as it’s the New Year we know that many of you will be making resolutions.  Whether you keep them up is a whole different thing but I’m sure the effort will be made – for the first few weeks at least!

We have been looking at the most common New Year’s resolutions and we have seen that they all revolve around looking and feeling good.  Some of the most popular resolutions include:
 
  • Keeping a healthy diet
  • Joining a gym
  • Giving up smoking/drinking
  • Spending time with family and friends
  • Learning a new skill
  • Enjoying life more
  • Not getting stressed
  • Achieving career goals

Courtesy of Ambro / freedigitalphotos.net

Now, we’re not claiming to be able to turn you into a buff, toned, health and fitness guru but we reckon we may be able to help.  How?  Well, by pushing Simply Nectar of course :)  Apologies for the shameless self promotion but we believe Simply Nectar really could help you keep to your resolutions – or some of them anyway.

We can help with the healthy diet goal and possibly the giving up drinking goal.  We can even help with enjoying life more because consuming more fruit means a healthier mind and body.  This means you’re set up to be happier, more confident and more ambitious.  

A daily intake of fruit can benefit the body in numerous ways.  It can aid weight loss, energy gain and the daily intake of water.  Fruit contains 80% water so adding more to the diet means an increased overall water intake.  Fruit can also help digestive problems, lower cholesterol levels and stimulate the memory.  Incredible huh?

Courtesy of Grant Cochrane / freedigitalphotos.net


Here at Simply Nectar we produce eight different flavoured drinks.  The drinks contain natural fruit and are free from pesticides and refined sugars.  If the drinks need sweetening at all only natural lemon or grape juice is added.  There are no other ingredients – the drinks are pure simplicity, hence the name, Simply Nectar.


The flavours are:

  • Raspberry – raspberries are loaded with vitamins, antioxidants and fibre
  • Citron Presse – lemons are high in vitamins, help digestion and prevent vomiting, throat trouble, acidity and rheumatism 
  • Pear – pears are high in vitamins, fibre, antioxidants, folate and boron
  • Mango – mangos are rich in pre-biotic dietary fibre, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants
  • Apricot – apricots are low in calories and are a rich source of dietary fibre, vitamins and minerals. They are packed with numerous health promoting phyto-chemicals; that helps prevent heart disease, reduce cholesterol levels and offer protection against cancers
  • Peach – peaches are a good source of many different vitamins and minerals, but one that is particularly important is potassium
  • Orange – oranges are an excellent source of vitamin C and flavonoids.  One orange supplies nearly 100 percent of the recommended daily dietary intake of vitamin C.  They are high in fibre, potassium, folic acid, calcium and amino acids
  • Apple – apples are a rich source of dietary fibre. They are also high in sources of antioxidant and the mineral boron, which helps to promote bone growth


Photo by Laura Collins

If you make virgin cocktails with the Simply Nectar you won’t crave alcohol because the taste of the fruit will be so good without it.  The fruit will enhance natural happiness and energy levels so alcohol will not be needed in this respect either.

Finally, if you drink Simply Nectar while reading a foreign dictionary you may even get to learn a language…that’s definitely attempting to get a new skill under your belt.

Sorted!

Simply resolutions.

Simply Nectar