Tag Archives: biodynamic

MOGLi Creepy Halloween Snacks

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MOGLi Pretzel Pumpkins

mogli-chocolate-halloween-ideas

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 packet of MOGLi Spelt Pretzels
  • 1 pack of chocolate beans (especially green)
  • 1 bar of white chocolate
  • 5 drops of orange food colouring

METHOD

  1. Break the chocolate into small pieces and melt in a bowl over a water bath. When the chocolate is runny, carefully stir in the food colouring.
  2. Dip the pretzels one at a time in the bowl with a fork. When fully coated place on baking paper or a plate.
  3. Make the green leaves with your selected chocolate beans (carefully chopped in half) or you could use green icing. Leave to cool and the perfect Halloween pumpkins are ready to enjoy!

 

MOGLi Pizza Stick Witches Brooms

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INGREDIENTS

METHOD

  1. Take a cheese slice and cut off a piece about 5cm wide.
  2. Wrap the cheese slice tightly around one end of a pizza stick.
  3. Wrap a couple of chives tightly around the cheese and secure. Your broom stick is now ready to fly!

Firmly on the side of planet earth 🌎

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It will be no surprise to our Ulula friends that Ulula is firmly on the side of planet Earth!

For us, our planet is our most precious resource, and to be looked after well our soil needs to be nurtured not poisoned with chemicals – and we have been lucky enough as a family to have always understood this.

We farm biodynamically on Rush Farm where Ulula is based, and we choose brands like Holle and MOGLi because of their enduring commitment to the environment. In recently published trial results, fewer harmful greenhouse gas emmissions were discovered from biodynamic agriculture – 44% compared to 100% with the conventional system!

While it may be true to say that by our very existence we humans are hurting nature and the Earth, we can tread softly, and even where our ‘bit to help’ seems only a little bit, it is still important to strive – and to feel that in our striving we are not alone.

The third ‘State of Nature’ report, released today, is extremely upsetting reading – for us all – both adults and children.

One of the concepts mentioned is called ‘shifting baseline syndrome’ – i.e. each generation accepts the situation in which they live as normal. Once a field has been built on, we forget how it used to look as a field rather than houses. We’ve forgotten or not experienced how our countryside ‘should’ be & tend to think that what we have now is ‘normal’.

Is it time to ask ourselves as adults how our memories of the countryside differ to those of our experiences now? Where is the bird song when we walk through the park? Do you remember when journeys in the car used to be accompanied by the thuds of insects crashing into the windscreen? The age old joke always told – ”what’s the last thing that goes through a bug’s mind when it hits the windscreen?”…. Bad jokes aside, there are far fewer bugs to hit our windscreens nowadays, and as so eloquently put on the Channel4 News last night – “If you pour poison onto the land for 70 years, you’re going to kill everything!”

Our children are aware, children across the world are becoming more aware – they want to make positive changes, and we adults have to be able to hear them and help them to act not just think – by changing our views and the ways we live in our precious world.

Greta Thunberg is an inspiration to our children, and to us as grown-ups too. We used to talk about these issues between ourselves, very rarely finding others who would want to talk on these subjects with us, but thanks to Greta’s courage in the face of her very real fears, this is now an open conversation between family, friends and strangers too.

On the 20th September 2019 there was a Global Climate Strike. Greta Thunberg and the Extinction Rebellion movement coalesced on this day to lead a climate crisis protest. Millions of people marched for urgent action on climate breakdown. There have been many marches before and since – the “Fridays for Future” movement continues to ensure that there is a place and a time for children to take a stand, to not be immobilised by their fears for the future, but to collect their courage and act.

On the 20th, our children’s school agreed to go out on the march together – not just the older students who have used the “Fridays for Future” strikes to demonstrate their positions. This time all students and all teachers took direct action about something that has meaning to them – and discovered through the day a shared intent to do something.

Ulula is a family shop, run by a family, for families. But, as so often in life, we talk from the perspective of the adult, and we talk to other adults. Of course, we ‘should’ because we are adults, and as parents we make the decisions of what to buy and where from. But… maybe it is time to hear from the children:

Our School’s Global Warming Strike

© Theo Parsons

On 20th September 2019, our school got together to hold a global warming strike in the nearby Mary Stephen’s Park. Other protests also happened on the global warming day. In the afternoon the whole school got together to march down clutching a placard each. When we arrived we sang to Mary Stephen’s Park. Several watchers-by filmed us! After that we scanned the area for litter. Bin bags were filled, and the park got cleaner! We approached the grounds intending to save the planet. Remember, one bottle top could take a turtle’s or any other animal’s life! Once we had spread out across the park, collecting plastic sweet wrappers, yoghurt pots, bottle lids and many other planet ruining items, we returned to the bandstand where we marched round it shouting

‘what do we want?’

‘save our planet!’

‘when do we want it?’

‘NOW!’

We chanted this back to the school hoping the whole town would hear us. My friends are also very passionate to pick up litter and help where we live make a change. Although some people may think we are only kids and won’t make a difference, I saw people videoing us. Just think, that video could get shown to a friend and then more friends. It also might make it onto facebook where lots of people would see it and also make a change.

It felt good to finally get out there and make a dent!

Theo Parsons, Aged 12

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Bees make more than honey; what we can do to protect bees & other pollinators…

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biodynamic-bees

Bees make more than honey – they are key to food production because they pollinate crops. Honeybees, bumblebees, wild bees and insects like butterflies, wasps, and hoverflies are responsible for pollinating at least 35% of the crops we eat, including our favourite fruit and vegetables like apples, pears, onions and carrots, as well as enabling up to 90% of wild plants to thrive. 80% of European wildflowers require insect pollination. Many of them such as foxglove, clovers and vetches rely on bees.

But currently, more and more bees are dying.  There is a 2% decline in insects every year. A world without pollinators would be devastating for food production. Why is this decline happening and how can we help bees and other pollinators to recover?

The trigger for the decline in bees is man

Loss of habitat, urbanisation, intensification of agriculture, insecticides and herbicides, monocultures, parasites, pathogens and climate change all play a part in declining bee and insect pollinator numbers.

Urbanisation means fewer green spaces with bee-friendly plants, which when combined with the intensification of agriculture has led to a loss and fragmentation of valuable habitats for pollinators, such as grasslands, old fields, shrublands, forests, and hedgerows. This is thought to be the major cause of decline in wild pollinator numbers.

Since the 1940’s industrial monocultures have replaced polycultures full of biodiversity. Monoculture farming means that only single varieties of plants are cultivated over large areas, which then all bloom at the same time. This is great for the bees during those flowering times, but during the other months of the year they can struggle to find food.

wild-beeNot all bees are the same. There are over 20,000 known species of bee globally. Around 270 species of bee have been recorded in the UK. Only 1 of these is the famous Honeybee. Wild bees, in contrast to the honeybee and the bumblebee which live in social colonies, are loners and build their nests in tree trunks, snail shells, crevices and holes in the ground. They undertake all work from nest building to brood care themselves. About 30% of the wild bee species find their food only on certain plant species and are in symbiosis with them. This means that plants and wild bees benefit from each other. If these plants are no longer sufficiently available because other plants are more profitable, the bees are unable to feed on their ideal food source and if they then die the plant cannot survive either. As a result, not only the bee dies, but also the plant biodiversity decreases.  Therefore, it is very important that we protect the diversity of plants and thus also the wild bees.

Biodynamic farming uses open-pollinated seed.  This is seed that is renewable, it can be saved by farmers and growers for the next year and used to naturally breed new varieties which helps to ensure diversity

Pesticides are harming bees and other insects, after all that is what they’re designed to do. There has been a rise in pesticide use over recent times, with farming becoming heavily dependent on pesticides. The average field is treated with pesticides 17.4 times a year in the UK.

In Biodynamic agriculture soil preparations containing oak bark are applied to the soil. The tannins contained in it help to repel insects

Parasites like the Varroa mite have been identified as a major cause of bee colony loss. Agro-chemical companies claim that industrial chemical pesticides, including neonicotinoids, play an almost negligible role in bee death. However, studies show that pesticides undermine the immune system of insects, making them more susceptible to disease, parasites and pathogens which in turn significantly weakened honeybees, causing high mortality and high levels of stress. In addition, the use of pesticides contaminates the soil.

In order to fight the mite, only organic acids are used in biodynamic beekeeping

What we can do to protect bees & other pollinators

Bees are a fantastic symbol of nature. That they are in trouble is a sign that our natural environment is not in the good shape it should be. Whilst over 60% of crops such as wheat, millet, rice, potatoes and bananas are wind pollinated or self pollinated, a world without vegetables and fruit would result in diets that would be dull, poorer and less nutritious. Ecological, organic and demeter farming offers a solution for the global pollinators and agriculture crisis. Ecological farming ensures healthy farming and healthy food for today and tomorrow by protecting soil, water and climate and by promoting biodiversity. It does not contaminate the environment with chemical inputs like synthetic chemical pesticides, fertilisers nor genetically engineered organisms. Ecological farming is feasible and already practiced on a large geographic scale within Europe.

MOGLi and Holle advocate organic and organic-plus demeter farming, helping to ensure healthy habitats and food for bees and pollinators, and healthy food for babies, children and adults too.

What we can do as gardeners to help bees

There are things that we can do at home to make our gardens as bee-friendly as possible:

  1. Put away harmful chemical insecticides.
  2. Leave a small area of your garden to go wild or undisturbed in the summer months, so bumblebees can create their nests and other insects are given shelter.
  3. Provide habitat such as a small wood pile in a corner where bugs can nest and feed. Build (or buy) a simple home for solitary bees.
  4. Grow a wide range of plants that flower throughout the year to ensure there are no hunger-gaps. Ivy flowers during the autumn months, a crucial time for bees as they build up their stores for the winter. Spring bulbs will provide an early source of food as will hazel and pussy or goat willow.
  5. Choose bee-friendly plants. Honeybees prefer open, daisy-like flowers such as cosmos, sunflowers and michaelmas daisies, asters etc. Verbena bonariensis is also a favourite. Bees also love herbs such as marjoram, mint, chives, fennel, lavender and thyme and will help pollinate your veg and fruit.

 

mogli.de/ursachen-fuer-das-bienensterben/

sos-bees.org/

friendsoftheearth.uk/bees/why-do-we-need-bees

www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2018/november/bee-declines-is-banning-pesticides-the-solution.html

www.biodynamic.org.uk/sustainability-corner-bee-positive/

MOGLi Sustainable Packaging

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It’s not only the content that counts!

Demeter quality in sustainable packaging

Sustainable product packaging is always an issue, because packaging waste is a major problem worldwide. MOGLi have made it their mission to continue to work on adapting all their product packaging into sustainable packaging and are constantly working to reduce plastic waste. MOGLi’s team has already achieved:

1. Packaging of 85% renewable raw materials

To keep product fresh and safe, plastic packaging is currently the “best” solution for packaging many of the MOGLi products. Nevertheless, MOGLi are constantly looking for sustainable packaging solutions. That’s why they’re especially pleased with their new Fruit Pouch packaging. Sugarcane-based and completely aluminium-free: this is their first step towards a more sustainable packaging future.

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2. Packed 100% aluminum free

All of the MOGLi Fruit Pouch and Spelt Bites packaging is completely aluminum-free. As a rule, deep-fried or oil-baked products, such as aluminium-free-logoMOGLi Spelt Bites, are packaged in aluminum-lined inner packaging. This helps to ensure freshness.

On the one hand, aluminum is harmful to the environment and energy-intensive, and on the other hand aluminum cannot be recycled when used in combination with other film layers of packaging. MOGLi are happy to have found an alternative packaging without aluminum what works as well in terms of freshness and continue to work hard to adapt their other products to more sustainable packaging.

Join us and MOGLi in making that first step and take a minute to think about packaging when you’re shopping.

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Simple Savoury Finger Food

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january-19-biscuits

From the Holle Kitchen these home-made savoury biscuits, coconut chips and pomegranate seeds are perfect for older babies.

Ingredients:

  • 350 g spelt flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 egg
  • 100 ml Holle Organic Baby Weaning Oil
  • ½ jar of vegetable puree Veggie Curry

Method:

  1. Whisk the egg
  2. Sift the flour and baking powder and add to the egg
  3. Add the cinnamon, butter and puree
  4. Mix with a dough hook to a firm dough
  5. Roll out and then cut out with fun shaped biscuit cutters
  6. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes at 200 degrees / Gas level 3-4

Holle Infant Formula Demeter Milk

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Schrozberger-dairy

The cow’s milk used in the Holle infant formula milks come from the Schrozberger dairy – the largest Demeter organic dairy in Germany. The dairy is a cooperative run by the Schrozberger dairy farmers themselves who are totally independent of the interests of banks and shareholders. Schrozberger dairy farmers do not dehorn their cows, a painful process for the animals, as they believe that how the cows are treated affects the wholesomeness and quality of the milk. In fact, everything the farmers do, they do because they believe it is good for the quality of their products, good for the welfare of their animals and good for people and nature.

Schrozberger dairy

Established in 1974, Schrozberger dairy was one of the first dairies to start processing Demeter milk and they have since grown to become the largest Demeter dairy in Germany.

What does Demeter mean with regards to animal husbandry?

In biodynamic animal husbandry, the focus is on the fitness and health of the animals. Demeter does not approve of the painful dehorning of cows, or the cropping of ears and tails in pigs. While around 70% of free-roaming organic cows today have their horns removed, Schrozberger dairy farmers do not dehorn their dairy cows. For them it is out of respect for the animal but also, they believe that the integrity of the cows affects the wholesomeness and quality of the milk – even though there are no clinical studies to prove it. The administration of drugs such as antibiotics or hormones is strictly prohibited. In addition, the animals are kept in small herds to enable healthy ranking and social behaviour. Care is taken to ensure that the animals can move freely – both in their barns and in the fresh air. As a result, each barn and enclosure is adapted to the specific needs of different species.

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Demeter has strict feed guidelines. 100% of the feed must be organic feed and at least 2/3 of the feed used should comply with Demeter guidelines.

The cow’s manure is viewed as a valuable fertilizer. When mixed with choice herbs and minerals, it is used as a natural fertilizer to improve soil fertility. For this reason, cows are not just valued for their products such as milk or meat, but also for the benefits they bring to the health of the soil.

Schrozberger dairy processes only Demeter milk produced on their own farms. They also follow Demeter production guidelines and adhere to additional strict quality requirements when processing their milk, keeping their products as natural as possible. They use only gentle processing methods such as traditional pasteurisation and deliberately do not use homogenisers, UHTs, and ESL milk manufacturing processes that extend shelf life. This preserves most of the vitamins and natural ingredients.

Demeter is good for the animals, the environment – and above all for the quality of their milk.

Cooperative

Some say cooperatives are old-fashioned. But as a cooperative, the Schrozberger dairy farmers can make all decisions themselves and do not have to take either banks or shareholders into consideration. They can decide for themselves a ‘fair’ price to sell their milk at, how they manage their farms and business and which innovations they choose to invest in. Today, their dairy processes around 17 million kg of milk according to the strict Demeter guidelines and offers the world’s largest assortment of Demeter dairy products.

Holle produce the highest quality baby food products and will only use the best ingredients and the highest quality and most wholesome milk in their infant formula milks. For them, the cow’s milk from Schrozberger dairy farmers is the very best.

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Love, comfort & Holle – Happy 85th Birthday Holle!

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Happy 85th Birthday Holle!

It has been 85 years since Holle began manufacturing baby food using Demeter ingredients. Conscious of the fact that, as a manufacturer of baby food, they bear a very special responsibility – for the environment, our babies and their future, sustainable management and social responsibility have always been among their core values. Within the Ulula family we’ve been using Holle foods for our family for two generations so we say hooray for Holle!

Holle themselves celebrated this milestone saying:

“Always ORGANIC- for all the right reasons.

We are proud of our brand Holle’s 85 years’ history, and of the fact that Holle has become one of the leading manufacturers of organic baby food. Click here to find out more about our company’s history.

Ever since our company was founded, we have consciously focused our attention on mankind and the environment – because we want our products to deserve being called “sustainable”. Click here to find out more about our commitment to sustainability.

Today, we have a comprehensive baby food range with more than 80 products representing the message “Always ORGANIC – for all the right reasons”. From the start, we have focused on naturalness: Holle baby food is being produced only with raw ingredients grown to biodynamic or organic standards. We do not use chemical processing materials and preservatives, flavouring and colouring agents, added salt or granulated sugar.

Our long-term partnerships with our organic raw material suppliers are very important to us. They are the basis for the particularly high quality of our baby food.

Holle baby food products are gently processed; they represent a wholesome, natural and balanced diet, from the very beginning.”

Ulula. The home of Holle in the UK. For your Holle Hugs, check out the whole range at here xx

credit for this gorgeous photo @thismelissaworld

The Ulula Spelt Bite Band plays #MOGListyle

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Offering a real treat that tastes as good as nature can be – that is the Mogli promise!

Can you keep the beat with a Spelt Bite? Turn up the volume to enjoy our Ulula MOGLi Spelt Bites Heads-Shoulders-Knees&Toes challenge 🙂

Mogli’s Organic Spelt Bites are just so yummy! Spelt Bites are perfect for lunchboxes and rumbly tummies when out and about. A delicious snack for children and grown ups alike!

These crunchy bites are made from spelt grain, gently baked in sunflower oil, combined with either aromatic herbs from the garden or tomato & subtle aromatic spices including oregano and sweet paprika. Yum!

#MOGLi #schoolunchideas #organicsnacks #picnic #ulula #yummy #goodness #organicfood #familysnack #sharethelove #share #delicious

 

If  you need to take tit a little slower, head over to our facebook page for a slower beat with a Spelt Bite – and remember to turn up the volume to enjoy our Ulula MOGLi Spelt Bites Heads-Shoulders-Knees&Toes challenge 🙂 x

From #ululabump to #ululaformula to #ululababy to #ululapreschool & #ululabeyond – #Ulula is full of yummy and brilliant #biodynamic and #organic necessities for us all ❤️ x https://www.ulula.co.uk/new-mogli-organic-snacks.html

Baby’s Delicate Skin

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After birth, your baby loses the protective warmth of the mother’s body and now the skin is the only border between inside and outside and the environment. Baby skin is five times thinner than adult skin and is still developing. The top layer is formed through interaction with the environment, while the protective acid mantle and barrier function are also still forming. This means that baby’s skin absorbs externally applied active ingredients faster and can be much more sensitive. The sweat glands are also not yet fully developed, so baby’s small body has trouble regulating its warmth independently.

After birth, babies therefore need a warm, protective coat, not only in the form of natural, breathable materials, but also through skin-compatible care products and loving skin contact.

During the first months of life baby’s skin needs simple, gentle care, for example your baby doesn’t need foam baths or shampoos as they only dry out the skin. A bath once a week is perfectly adequate in the first months of life and in the meantime your baby can be cleaned daily with a soft, damp washcloth. After washing or bathing, a body lotion can be applied to protect the skin of your baby and provide moisture. The most sensitive part is the nappy area, which needs extra special care. After a nappy change, it is good for the skin to be cleaned and treated with warm water, a soft cloth and then a few drops of body oil. Alternatively, you can put a few drops of oil in the water. If possible allow your baby to lie in a warm place for a few minutes, without a nappy on to allow the skin to have some fresh air. Finally, a layer of a good nappy cream offers protection against soreness.

Weleda Calendula Baby Care provides comfort and supports the development of healthy skin. From over eighty years of experience working with natural substances comes Weleda’s deep understanding of the special needs of a baby’s delicate skin. All of their products have been developed with the assistance of physicians and midwives and are dermatologically tested.

Martina Gebhardt’s Baby Care Range is demeter certified, ensuring the finest quality ingredients. The creams contain wool wax or lanolin as a base. The special value of the wool wax is that it closely resembles the vernix, the white, cheesy cell layer that covers and protects the baby‘s skin while in the womb. Wool wax gently protects sensitive baby skin and is very effective against nappy rash, which is why it is an important ingredient in the Martina Gebhardt Calendula Super- Protect cream.

Tip: Make your own wipes for traveling: for the purest option combine cooled boiled water with a few drops of organic baby oil. Place organic cotton wool pads in a shallow leak-proof container and pour the water and oil mixture over the pads until they are fully moistened. Keep the lid on to maintain the moisture and you are ready to go. As the liquid contains no preservatives or chemicals, make enough for just a couple of days at a time. You can also add some baby soap, but we didn’t find this necessary. Essential oils can cause irritation to very sensitive skin.

New! Softest safest organic cotton treasures for your little one have arrived!

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New to Ulula – organic cotton Swaddles, Bibs and Baby Buddies made with only the softest, safest organic cotton…

fresk-swaddle-set-2-pc-120x120-cm-whale-blue-fog-no-box These wonderful swaddles are made from soft, breathable organic cotton muslin with beautiful designs, and are generously sized at 120 x 120cm to make them truly multi-functional. These swaddles are so useful and handy in and around the home, nursery and nappy/changing bag.

fresk-swaddle-set-2-pc-120x120-cm-elefant-pink-no-boxSwaddling your baby in the first instance is so important to support them with the moro (startle) reflex which can be both surprising and distressing to such a tiny one. Joan Salter in The Incarnating Child recommends leaving their arms free to point upwards, so that their hands are near to their mouth. This is a more natural position for a newborn, than to have their arms down by their sides. Place them diagonally across the swaddle, then fold each side in turn, finally folding in the bottom of the swaddle around the baby in an extra layer of comfort.

fresk-swaddle-set-2-pc-120x120-cm-fox-blue-no-boxMuslins truly are a mother’s best friend. I had an airing cupboard shelf full of muslins, as I found that I was using several in just one day when my daughter was tiny!

They have so many uses, here are just a few:

  • great burping cloth
  • discreet breastfeeding
  • snuggle blanket
  • dribble catcher under baby’s chin when feeding
  • sunshade in car seat or pushchair
  • protection against wind in the pushchair or pram
  • impromptu bib as your little one gets older
  • lining the cot so you don’t have to change the whole bedding after your baby is sick

Made to the highest quality from pre-washed, 100% fine organic cotton, the swaddles are kind and gentle to delicate skin.

The smaller swaddles are 70 x 60cm and come in an attractive gift box. You may find these a better size for the changing bag.

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All the swaddles co-ordinate with the wonderfully soft and absorbent organic cotton bib and burp sets which make a perfect gift for your friends and family, and yourself!

The set comes in beautiful gift packaging and contains a bib and burp cloth to ensure that messes are kept to a minimum. When feeding, the bib is simply secured with snaps at the back and the burp cloth sits over your shoulder during winding and cuddles to protect your clothes from any little mishaps.

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Organic Toys? Certainly! These sweet organic baby buddy dolls are handmade in Egypt from natural organic cotton and filled with organic cotton off cuts from Under the Nile’s organic baby clothing range.

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Certified organic fabric makes it a safe comforter and teething toy, and the natural fibres make it nourishing to a baby’s senses.

Suitable from birth, with embroidered features and no small parts, this little friend makes a perfect present for a new-born or little one.

Or, if you prefer an adorable and cute elephant comforter there is just the one for you! Made from 100% organic Egyptian cotton inside and out and safe for little mouths.

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Perhaps your little one needs this cute cat comforter, or this bear buddy… choices, choices!

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What is so special about these baby buddies, is that they really do become best buddies – friends for life who share in the sleepy mumblings at nap time, and the chatty discussions about the dreams they just had in the morning… perfect!