Being married to a Spanish lady myself I can agree with a lot in this thread. Aldi and indeed Lidl aren't "budget" supermarkets in Spain as they are here. They are more the equivalent of Tesco or Sainsburys. The fish counters are immense but that is because there is a demand for the produce there and people will buy whole fish, prepare and debone them at home etc. We have lost that art in many households and the newer generations will be put off by a whole fish and can only handle a fillet every now and then. The fact is that a lot of that fish you see in the supermarkets over there comes from British waters as well. If we had the demand for it here, the supermarkets would stock it.
Fruit and veg really comes down to the climate has as been said. Potatoes grow better in the UK, tomatoes in Spain, that is just the way it is. We eat and do more with whole potatoes here than they do in Spain. My wife had no idea how easy it was to make mashed potato. Her whole family believed it only ever came out of a packet in powder form.
Climate dictates a lot of this and you have to look back into times when food was less easily moved around the world as it is now and less technology to keep things chilled and fresh for longer. So Southern Europe cook with and use olive oil more whereas in the UK we cook with and use butter more. We will always have fresh milk in the UK as historically it worked for a milkman to deliver it without it spoiling. Whereas in Spain UHT milk in cartons is much more common as it doesn't spoil if left outside of the fridge in the same way.
Fruit and veg really comes down to the climate has as been said. Potatoes grow better in the UK, tomatoes in Spain, that is just the way it is. We eat and do more with whole potatoes here than they do in Spain. My wife had no idea how easy it was to make mashed potato. Her whole family believed it only ever came out of a packet in powder form.
Climate dictates a lot of this and you have to look back into times when food was less easily moved around the world as it is now and less technology to keep things chilled and fresh for longer. So Southern Europe cook with and use olive oil more whereas in the UK we cook with and use butter more. We will always have fresh milk in the UK as historically it worked for a milkman to deliver it without it spoiling. Whereas in Spain UHT milk in cartons is much more common as it doesn't spoil if left outside of the fridge in the same way.
