He met his love ahead of his wife. He was into organic before the rest of us were. Maybe the King-to-Be is just one of those who operates ahead of things - even himself, the Prince of Quixotic Timing. Prince Charles marches to a different drummer and perhaps when the Queen sings her last, he'll have a wee bit of time to wield his influence.
His thoughts on organic farming were way ahead of his time and his idea that 70s/80s architecture was a carbuncle on the face of London was spot on.
Prince Charles created Duchy Originals in 1990 in his effort to promote the advantages of organic farming through the production of natural and healthy foods and sound husbandry which helps to regenerate and protect the countryside. The land he owns in Gloucestershire, near his Highgrove country home is his place to farm organically. His Duchy Originals Oaten Bisquits and Gingered Bisquits came out in 1992 and they were sold in outlets like Harrods, Selfridge's, Fortnum & Mason as well as smaller outlets throughout Britain. My favorite: Organic Lemon Biscuits. You can buy them through The British Shoppe, based in the U.S.
He might have tried to be inspiring in 1980 when he shared that he talked to vegetables, but his use of heirloom seeds and his approach to agriculture are worth respecting.
Regardless, I like the fact that we call them cookies here, thanks to the Dutch word winning out over the British term in Manhattan. The public relations effort is on to prepare the public for the Prince to be King. Some stuff is fluff. Some is stuff to notice and chew on.
Why do we make such a big deal over royalty? Are they just a curiosity here in the US? Most of them are a couple of fries short of a Happy Meal because of the way they are raised, or because of the limited gene pool from which they derive. "Organic" food is a misnomer anyway. We can't eat inorganic food -- it's toxic. The label "organic" is usually more a marketing ploy than actual production practice. I read the article some months ago in National Geographic about his farming practices. If that was the way we farmed throughout the world, we could cut the population in half through starvation.
Posted by: Panhandle Poet | May 16, 2007 at 05:47 AM
I guess anything we grow is "organic" but the term refers to being free of pesticides and in animals, hormones and antibiotics. I am not familiar with the Prince's food production, but when you have raised cattle on a farm, where they eat grass from pastures that have never been sprayed, they are not innoculated with antibiotics, and they are not artificially enhanced by steroid growth, it is completely different from others who participate in the practice. So there are some differences out there and the farmers and ranchers who make the effort to do it differently, always enjoy the people who know the difference. As for the biscuits, nevert had any of his.
Posted by: anthony | May 16, 2007 at 07:00 AM
Thank you. I learn so much here.
Posted by: SusieJ | May 16, 2007 at 12:59 PM
I'd rather call them cookies, myself...a biscuit is only good with sausage thickening gravy or maybe butter and homemade strawberry preserves :)
Posted by: Early Bird | May 16, 2007 at 04:12 PM
Nobody should be criticized for talking to vegetables (or flowers, too). Who's to say it doesn't work? Personally, I think they like it.
Posted by: Old Horsetail Snake | May 16, 2007 at 04:40 PM