Müller not Muller

In the rather funny discussion that surrounded the very tongue in cheek comment by certain EU officials that English could, following Brexit, be removed from the languages used in the EU, I will add a further suggestion: The UK should consider phasing in German keyboards for PC's and mobile phones. After all, Aldi & Lidl are now as commonplace in the UK as Tesco and Sainsbury and you stock more Müller brand dairy products than are available in Germany. If I search "Müller" on Tescos online website, I get Zero results but a search of "Muller" brings up 68 yoghurt and dairy products, I suspect three times more than is available in our local supermarkets.

My true preference would be that UK supermarket chains fought back against Aldi & Lidl and opened up stores here in Germany, stocking and displaying UK products. There is no comparison in terms of choice and quality compared to most of the local chains. In 99% of German supermarkets you will find the following "creams": whipping, creme fraiche and sour, the last two perhaps in plain and herb varieties. That's it - no single, double, clotted. Let's not even start on the subject of choice and quality of fresh food and vegetables.

Todays Blip is an early Tractor Tuesday as other matters tomorrow to be recorded. It is of one of our local Müllers, Walter collecting food to produce eventually milk and beef although the milk is not for direct human consumption but for the Mother-Calf Suckling Herd of Limousin that he keeps within sight and sound of our house and as much as possible outdoors. Walter and his family follow an organic small scale farm principal and are despite all the trend towards consumers wanting organic foods, still somewhat looked down on by the traditional, turbo cow fraction. He may not always have the most modern, biggest, shining, gleaming horsepower monsters but he does try to work with respect for the animals and environment. I like Walter and his approach.

Most of the conventional milk farmers are not great fans of the Müller Milk company who have a reputation for squeezing every 0.01 cent possible out of the payments they make to farmers. Müller Milk started in 1896 here in Swabian Bavaria as a small village dairy but like so many is now a Luxembourg based multi, more involved in Marketing, Logistics and Tax issues than with the products themselves. Has to be said the UK played a major role in their success when in 1992 they opened the first non German production site in Market Drayton.