There’s a new meat delivery service coming to Manchester this week that’s being described as a sustainable way to eat, a better way to cook and an easier way to support local farmers.
MeatCo is the region’s newest ethical delivery service born out of lockdown and a love for cooking.
The service will be completely unique as, rather than just offering the most popular cuts of meat, it will encourage the use of more unusual cuts available from local suppliers. As well as the delivery service, the team at MeatCo will also teach its customers to cook each new cut too, with monthly recipes provided to introduce customers to a new sustainable way of eating.
Instead of the customers picking and choosing the product for each box, each delivery will contain a variety of the very best selection of meat on offer from local farms and the contents will change throughout the year in a bid to reduce waste and encourage a more sustainable way to eat.
Currently in Britain, 26% of meat is imported to keep up with demand of more popular cuts, such as sirloin or fillet, with 27% of British meat being exported to other countries as Brits simply don’t want it. This leads to hundreds of thousands of unnecessary food miles each year and results in massive negative environmental effects. Demand for specific cuts of meat has also opened up the UK market to imports from countries with lower animal welfare standards and high intensity farming practices.
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As local farms are then forced to compete with these lower standards, many local farmers are struggling to make a living.
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MeatCo’s way of supplying readily available produce will not only help to reduce waste at local farms, but also help local suppliers thrive.
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The company is headed by two women from Manchester who are passionate about eating ethically, supporting local farmers and educating meat lovers about why it’s so important to do so.
Speaking on why they chose to launch the service, MeatCo said: “Lockdown has had a huge knock on effect on many things. Restaurants have been closed, and small local farmers lost a lot of business and were struggling.
“Essential shopping rules meant that deliver to your door options were more popular than ever, and spending more time at home has given people time to cook. We saw a lot of disastrous dishes on instagram and thought it was probably time to give a little helping hand whilst doing our best to support small and be as ethical as possible.
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“If you’re gonna eat it, do it right.”
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This new delivery service will be launching soon with delivery available right across Greater Manchester.
Fancy signing up for the Manchester pilot service now?
You can do so via the MeatCo website here, and you can also follow MeatCo on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all the latest updates.
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Elbow get behind campaign to save Jodrell Bank from closure
Danny Jones
Manc band Elbow are among the latest to get behind the campaign to save Jodrell Bank Observatory from closing permanently.
The Greater Manchester natives famously played a sold-out gig at the important scientific and cultural landmark for a very special live album recording well over a decade ago, and know all too well the site’s national and, indeed, global heritage.
Choosing the Observatory and the rare chance to perform a show in the shadow of the world-renowned James Lovell Telescope, it probably remains one of their most significant standalone UK date ever.
With that in mind, the local lads have been left just as worried by the news of its impending closure as everyone else, and have therefore issued a fresh appeal to help keep it open.
Posting a timely statement on social media, the group wrote: “Jodrell Bank has long been close to elbow’s heart. In 2012, the band played beneath the Lovell Telescope for one of the most memorable shows in our history.
“The recent news that funding for the e-MERLIN radio telescope network is set to end in 2028 puts the future of the scientific work at Jodrell Bank under serious threat. It is a remarkable place, with an extraordinary history, and one that continues to play an important role in science, culture and education.”
In addition to reliving clips and images from the historic live set all the years later, they also pointed people towards their ‘elbow – Live at Jodrell Bank‘ album documentary, which has now been made available online for the very first time as part of wider efforts to raise awareness around the cause.
Directing people to key online resources shared by the institution and astrophysics centre itself following their unfortunate update late last month, the push to not only find the funding but sustain support for the facility continues to ramp up throughout the world of science, arts and industry.
For anyone who somehow missed the news – 2028 being the current deadline handed down as per budget cuts across the sector – concerned parties here in the North West and all over the country have since started petitioning to save Jodrell Bank Observatory from shutting down for good.
In addition to being described as a “huge blow” to the field by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), some have even gone so far as to describe the decision as a form of “vandalism” when it comes to research and British culture as a whole.
Having also served as the host venue for the annual bluedot Festival since 2016, the multi-genre science and arts celebration could soon be forced to find a new home.
The battle is far from over yet, and the community has time to rescue Jodrell Bank Observatory from its fate, but it will take lots of money and more notable public figures to make it happen.
Once again, you can do your bit by signing the petition mentioned above right HERE.
Featured Images — Emma Farrer (via Wikimedia Commons)/The Manc Group
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All Greater Manchester boroughs to have 24-7 night buses from next month as new services launch
Emily Sergeant
Extra night buses, new routes, and more frequent bus services are being rolled out across the Bee Network at the end of this month.
You may remember that back in March, it was announced that every borough of Greater Manchester was set to get a night bus service in what is hoped to be a ‘boost’ to the night-time economy, and now plans to introduce these from September onwards have been confirmed by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), along with a series of other measures.
Oldham, Stockport, Tameside, and Trafford will all get a 24-hour bus service by next month, meaning every part of the region will have a night bus operating Thursday through to Sunday.
It’s expected that once the new services have launched, it will help around 625,400 people working in the night-time economy across Greater Manchester, as well as those out enjoying the region’s nightlife, TfGM has said.
Some of the other changes set to be introduced from next month include a selection of brand-new bus services, and more frequent buses during the day and at the weekends.
All Greater Manchester boroughs will have 24-7 night buses from next month / Credit: TfGM
There will also be better connections overall to key employment and leisure destinations like Manchester Airport, Trafford Centre, MediaCity, Middlebrook Retail Park in Bolton, Kingsway Business Park, and Logistics North.
“The Bee Network belongs to the people of Greater Manchester and it needs to work for every community,” explained Mayor Bev Craig.
“As we build it, we’re listening and responding to what residents want with the biggest set of improvements we’ve ever made in one go.
🚌 More improvements are on the way across the #BeeNetwork.
36 service changes will benefit around 740,000 people across Greater Manchester, helping more communities access reliable, convenient public transport.
“We’re bringing night buses to every borough, launching new routes and ensuring buses run more often in the mornings, evenings and weekends. In doing so, we’re making it easier than ever for people to get around the city region by bus, but we’re also supporting our businesses, whose staff and customers need a reliable and safe way to reach them.
“Almost three quarters of a million people live within walking distance of a bus route we’re improving over the next few months, and we’ll continue improving connections for even more communities based on the feedback we get.”
Emily Sergeant -
26th August 2020 
