“It is anticipated that the redevelopment project will cost in the region of £75,000, considerably less than using other private sector contractors”

Really?

The Welsh Assembly’s own business advisers recommend that private sector companies in receipt of a business grant pay no more than £2,500 for a full e-commerce powered website – which should also include branding, online marketing and promotion.

Perhaps The Food, Fisheries and Market Development Division (FFMDD) should have approached smaller Welsh web companies for a quote. That way they would have discovered that rather than contributing to their new ‘managing with less agenda’, building the site in-house could cost taxpayers over 10 times more.

More: Request for Communication and Marketing Approval for redevelopment of the Wales the True Taste Website

2. Organic fruit does not have chemical residues on its skin from pesticides.

3. Food additives linked to asthma, heart disease and hyperactivity are amongst those banned by organic standards. Hydrogenated fats are also banned in organic food.

4. Organic livestock is not fed with animal proteins, antibiotics, growth hormones, anti-parasite medicines and other drugs, so these do not get into humans through the food chain.

5. All organic eggs are free-range, but not all free-range eggs are organic. Organic chickens and eggs in the UK are strictly regulated. There must be less than 500 birds in a flock, the chickens must not be de-beaked and their diet must be free of antibiotics, animal protein and colourants.

6. By buying organic food, you can totally avoid genetically modified ingredients int the food chain. For example, organically raised cattle are not fed GM soya.

7. Intensive farming costs the tax-payer millions each year from cleaning up pesticides in our water supply, to massive EU subsidies. The BSE crisis alone cost taxpayers £4 billion. There has never been a reported case of BSE in cattle born and raised on an organic farm.

8. Organic farmers look after their soil by rotating crops, using composted manure and planting crops that naturally increase nitrogen in the soil. Artificial fertilisers that can pollute water sources are banned.

9. Organic farms support wildlife habitats, with greater diversity of birds, insects and plants.

10. Organic produce that is sold locally, at farm shops and farmers markets for example, also helps the ecology by saving on transport pollution and packaging waste.

February
Eat your greens! Cabbage, chicory, leeks and spring greens are plentiful and will give you nutrients to help protect against colds. Rhubarb is available now – great for crumbles, jams, fools and puddings.

March
March can be a difficult month to find home-grown organic vegetables, as winter produce is finishing but it is too early for spring harvests. Forward planning by freezing your own organic vegetables can help out. Rocket, kale and spinach may also be available, if the winter weather has been kind.

April
The first spring vegetables will be appearing: aubergines, broccoli, celery, courgettes and tomatoes. The end of the month usually sees the start of the (brief) English asparagus season.

May
New vegetables crops will be available, such as beetroot, broad beans, fennel and lettuce. New potatoes are tender and sweet, boiled in their skins with a sprig of mint.

June
An abundant month for fresh organic fruit and veg. Summer salad leaves, tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes and herbs make tasty salads, especially if you’ve grown them yourself. Soft fruit like strawberries, gooseberries, cherries and raspberries are ripe.

July
A glut of over-ripe berry fruit can be used to make preserves or to flavour vodka and gin. Apricots, nectarines, peaches and plums are also delicious and in season.

August
Peppers are plentiful, and the colours are great in salads to tempt kids. Try them on the barbeque too, or roasted in the oven. Marrows are beginning to appear in shops now; great for stuffing with chilli mince or ratatouille.

September
This is the best month for the organic shopper as there is plenty of choice of fruit and vegetables on offer. As well as salads, there are autumnal crops such as sweetcorn, squashes and pumpkins. The first root vegetables are being harvested too; potatoes, parsnips, carrots, onions and potatoes. Autumn fruits such as plums and damsons are ripe. You could even pick your own blackberries and sloes from country hedgerows, away from traffic pollution. This is the time of year to plan ahead for the lean winter months by storing, preserving and freezing.

October
Autumnal vegetables to choose from include red cabbage, leeks, aubergines, fennel and swede. Hazelnuts (cobnuts) and sweet chestnuts are ready to be gathered from the wild. Pumpkins will still be available for Hallowe’en.

November
Savoy cabbages and purple-sprouting broccoli are ready; great comfort food with mashed potato and celeriac when the nights are drawing in.

December
A bleak, cold month but the focus is often on Christmas festivities – especially the feasting. Order your organic turkey early and don’t forget the Brussels sprouts! You can also buy organic wines, beer, cider, spirits and liqueurs online – great for celebrating and for presents.