Graeme-Francis Mullin on a mission to discover London’s Organic Pub Trail
The Organic Pub
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Graeme-Francis Mullin
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The world's first certified organic pub, The Duke of Cambridge London was opened in December 1998. The pub caters for both food and orangic beer. There is an extensive wine list of over 50 wines carefullfy researched to find the best organic wines of the world.
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Overview
Before the 1990’s the famous British institution – the pub seemed to be a slowly disappearing phenomenon. Men only, dark and dingey bars, full of smoke, dirty furniture, Australian lager and a couple of mass-produced ales.
In 1991 things began to change. David Eyre and Mike Belben opened the Eagle and the Gastro pub was born. They took an ordinary corner Victorian pub and opened up all the windows so you could see into the pub from the street, the atmosphere inside was light and airy. They stripped the building back to its very basics and served really good quality simple food and drink. The gastro pub combined good simple food with casual dining in a traditional British institution - the pub.
The Duke of Cambridge opened in 1998, we took the basic concept of the gastro pub and added organic. We are certified by the Soil Association, which means all our food and drink is organic (apart from that caught by hunting and fishing). We are the first and only certified pubs in Britain.
COMPANY VALUES
"I believe business must act responsibly and with a moral code of conduct. Businesses must be driven by strong values and a sense of their contribution and impact on society, not just by money, growth and greed. Our business is ethical as well as profitable."
Geetie Singh
Founder and Managing Director
BUYING POLICY
• Transportation causes environmental damage so we aim to source as locally as possible.
• We never use airfreight
• All of our meat comes from Southern England.
• All of our beer is brewed in (or close to) London, apart from Freedom Lager which is brewed in Germany and imported by train.
• We aim to always use seasonal fruit and vegetables.
• All of our suppliers are small independent companies; we do not source from any multi nationals.
• All of our tea, coffee, sugar and chocolate are Fair Trade.
• We purify our water on the premises in order to eliminate 'water miles' and minimise glass wastage
• Wherever possible we do not buy packaged goods - this is why we dont stock crisps!
ENERGY POLICY
• The electricity at all our pubs is wind and solar generated and purchased through Good Energy.
• We monitor our energy use and try to reduce as when ever we can.
• Our cleaning products contain a minimum of harmful chemicals.
• We recycle, re-use and 'don't-use' wherever possible, including building materials and furniture, paper, cardboard, wood, corks and glass (soon to include kitchen waste).
FISH POLICY
• Given the horrendous environmental damage caused by commercial fishing we have developed a set of standards to use when buying fish. It is the first policy of its kind to be approved by The Marine Conservation Society. The policy is based on sourcing non depleted stocks and using sustainable fishing methods.
• The majority of our fish comes from the South West Coast, this encourages diversification towards species that would otherwise be discarded, relieves pressure on over fished species and supports local fishing communities. For further details on our fish sourcing policy, please click here.
"As far as the individual is concerned, the problems resulting from our neglect of our natural environment are a powerful reminder that each of us has a contribution to make. Whilst one person’s actions may not have a significant impact, the combined effect of millions of individuals’ actions certainly does. This means that it is time for all those living in the industrially developed nations to give serious thought to changing their lifestyle”.
Dalai Lama
‘Ancient Wisdom Modern World Ethics for a new Millennium’
The worlds first certified organic pub, The Duke of Cambridge was opened in December 1998 in Islington, London N1.
Key features
food
health
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