Wychwood

Not a clue, I'm not into conspiracies, the great reset (ROFL) or any other internet tripe. I have no bone in this particular fight, but it seems a number of you do. So with grace and a sigh, I'll bow out.

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, Kappy, but Ambergris is quite right. The below quote is direct from the Government of India website. https://archive.pib.gov.in/archive2/erelease.aspx Some media reports have suggested that all health related collaboration with the Gates Foundation with National Health Mission (NHM) has been stopped. This is inaccurate and misleading. BMGF continues to collaborate and support the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. I have a real problem with misinformation, conspiracies and snake oil sellers. However, in this case, it was fairly simple to debunk the lies. Sorry According to WHO, India was declared free of Polio in 2014. WHO Certifies India As Polio Free (mea.gov.in) The rumour "Indian doctors blame the Gates campaign for a devastating vaccine-strain polio epidemic that paralyzed 496,000 children between 2000 and 2017," This groundless claim can be traced back to an Instagram post made on 7 April 2020 by Bobby Kennedy jnr. who is a founder member and supporter of World Mercury Project, a California-based organization that has been vocal against vaccines. Further, they are one of the biggest sources of anti-vaccine advertisements on Facebook. https://thelogicalindian.com/fact-check/bill-gates-polio-vaccine-covid-19-gates-foundation-21270

Over this side of the pond a cluster of positive tests have come back from routine waste water testing that is carried out by the water companies. In Chiswick (London) I believe. It is said the Polio virus may have been shed from someone who has recently had a vaccine in a country where live vaccine is used. The government has recommended you check your vaccination records to see if you are up to date and if you are not, get a vaccine if you feel the need. Nothing really to panic about. As usual, the MSM have taken these results and recommendations and sensationalised them. I'm not bothered about the government, they have made a sensible suggestion but by god I'm sick fed-up the media (and I include these snake oil preppers) making a mountain out of a molehill.

The elastic has gone in mine.......considering braces

Today is 'Laydees wot lunch' day today. We're a loose gang of friends and hangers-on who meet now and then to chat and do something crafty and share some food. It's been a while since we last got together and now we have all retired, we are planning on making it more frequent.

You hit the nail on the head, Jeepers. A credit card is incredibly useful but you must keep a handle on it as it is easy to see it as free money.

Congratulations on your retirement Dogmom, so glad you made it over the line!. I'm a recent retiree too and it's bliss. I can't tell you how nice it is to get up and not have that sick feeling because you have to go to work. Enjoy!

A propane burner was a consideration, getting the bottles of gas is a problem though. 91F!!! I wish! Yesterday it was 64F which is about average for this time of year in these parts.

Thanks everyone, it's a help to get other opinions. The galling thing is that the glass induction hob has an extra large cooking area, but induction doesn't work with aluminium! So the options are to get a steel bottomed pressure canner or try on a ceramic hob like the one in the picture. So, what I take away from this is that it's OK to can on a portable ring, but it does get hot underneath, so I will now spend some time either finding out how much an induction friendly canner is or spend some time finding a portable hob with a large enough plate. I have considered an induction adjuster, but I'm wary due to the time the canner spends on the hob. All this because my son wanted a cat friendly kitchen!

My son upgraded his kitchen recently and had an induction hob fitted. Obviously this does not work with my Presto Aluminium pressure canner. So I'm considering getting a portable ceramic hob like this..... Double Hot Plate, CUSIMAX 2400W Electric Hob Ceramic Hot Plate, Portable Double Camping Hob Infrared Cooktop with Dual Temperature Control, Easy to Clean, Black Stainless Steel : Amazon.co.uk: Home & Kitchen Do you think it would be safe to can on one of these?

You have all shamed me. I have some green beans in the dehydrator. If things go as the government expect it to, I may be glad to have them. I'm trying to reduce my dependence on the freezer just in case we get power cuts this winter.

My sentiments exactly Darlene. I spent a bit of time wrangling the basket of food inflation rates from the ONS website yesterday and the inflation rate on just food is around 6%. Percentages don't really mean much to me, so from now, I am going to keep a copy of my online food shopping receipt to try and track price rises.

@Jeepers Have you tried steam blanching instead of boiling? I find it's much kinder to whatever you are blanching and the results are definitely better.

Wow! I just did some sums and those tins of formula (if they are the a similar size 28-32oz) are more than twice the price! an 800g tin of formula here is £12.50 ($15.60) give or take a bit for brand difference. It breaks my heart that stores can see fit to price gauge formula. That's really low. I'd happily send over formula if needed.

I haven't done much fruit either Jeepers. I'm a big fan of dehydrating frozen veg too. It saves so much time prepping and the quality is consistent. Has anyone else tried dehydrating cooked beans? Pinto work best, but Kidney and Cannellini work well too. They look a bit odd once dried, but come good once rehydrated.