Regional sustainability improves the social, economic, transport and environmental health of this regional & all species of life in it.

Red Dragon Inn follows the maxim "think globally, act locally".

SOCIAL & POLITICAL

Red Dragon Inn Emphasises regional processing...

Offering local employ in an ethical, non-exploitive business that is about worthwhile employment that carries ability to help effect worthwhile change in society.

Helping create pride, unity and empowerment in regional society; leading to demand for greater decentralised regional political autonomy.

Thereby encouraging a regional perception, improving social cohesion.

Red Dragon Inn believes Regional and Federal (i.e. national) governance is all Australia needs and can afford. Further layers (eg State) of governance only dilute the democratic functioning.

Boosting organic farm pride, and small town pride by acknowledging, at last, the vital role of local caring farmers in growing us clean nutritious food.

Every $ spent of regional produce and products denies that $ to the unethical multinationals and rogue corporations who are our geopolitical enemies and the enemy of sustainable development.

We need to start, develop and support ethically based regional businesses that adhere to principles of regional sustainability; thereby leaving the consumer, the environment and the local economy in better health. This is not easy. By definition it is hard to start a sustainability based business in an economic climate dominated by anti sustainable and anti regional practices, structures and rewards. Government likes the status quo and only consumer pressure can bring about change. Multinationals do not care if you like them or not, only that you consume their products and give them your $; some of which they then give to politicians to maintain the unsustainable status quo.

Deny them your $ and the basis of their power evaporates.

ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY

Red Dragon Inn strives to help move our region toward a more sustainable economic model of local farming, processing, employment and sales, which stimulate regional economic activity and income both directly and through the 'multiplier effect'.

This regional economic model is the future of economic sustainability of all regions in all countries.

At present we have the economic opposite - multinational corporations whose products drain money and employment from the regions, use much fuel, and clog roads trucking inputs and products all around the world.

The multinationals in league with western government - have distorted the world of food production, of wealth accumulation and of world trade: they exploit the weakest worldwide link in the chain of production, write the trade rules, exploit all subsidies available to them and exploit whatever political influence they can grab or buy. They are by nature unethical and profit driven only. This passes as modern 'free trade' economics.

Regional economic sales are to both residents of the region and visiting tourists. If tourists spend $ on local produced and sourced products then the region gets an economic boost without having to transport products to where the tourist came from. Obviously it enhances tourist experiences and helps create a regional image to attract tourists. The difference to a regions economy and health (and the planets health) between a tourist spending a $1 in Byron (or in Bali) on a local product or on an 'imported' product is dramatic. One builds the other destroys.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

Red Dragon Inn will only use certified organic ingredients sourced by preference from the local region.

This improves economic viability and allows better future planning for local certified organic farms; not only by standard purchases and contracts but by also providing a market for seasonal gluts of produce for secondary processing.

Red Dragon Inn encourages the switch for regional agriculture to certified organic farming with its attendant land stewardship responsibilities and that already adhere to principles of agricultural, social, and environmental sustainability.

Red Dragon Inn Will at all times minimise packaging and use recycled material wherever possible.
In the case of the live Red Dragon Inn organic ginger beer, plastic bottles have to be used for safety. It could be in glass only if pasteurised.
All organic waste at the red dragon inn kitchen is either composted on Warra Warra organic farm or is collected for Lismore's state of the art worm farm. Red Dragon Inn organic ginger beer is distributed in the northern rivers and Brisbane without using any packing cartons and for Courier delivery we use recycled (new cartons but unused that were intended to go for waste from a byron drinks biz that had closed) cartons. Red Dragon Inn acts to reduce road freight 'travel or food miles' thereby reducing fuel requirements, road upgrade requirements, vehicle pollution and all attendant environmental degradation.

'TRAVEL MILES' or 'FOOD MILES'

Red Dragon Inn believes action to dramatically reduce transport requirements 'food miles' for all inputs - by using the most local possible inputs - and to focus on regional sales goes a long way to reducing negative environmental and social consequences of the food and drinks we buy.

"Food miles are the distance food travels from the farm to the consumer. .

When calculating 'Food miles' we need also to consider the distances involved in packing materials for the food.

Department of Environment, Food and Regional Affairs (DEFRA) in the UK has recently published a report on the validity of food miles as an indicator of sustainable development in which it sates that food transport accounts for 25% of all heavy goods vehicles kilometres in UK. It is not clear if these figures include beverages like soft drinks.

Within Australia with our highly centralised production and distribution centres in state capital cities and large geographical supply areas. I would think our % of mega trucks carrying food would be much higher.

Airfreight fresh food is rapidly growing (up 140% since 1992 in UK) an environmental disaster. In the UK 1% of total food miles is by air freight but this represents 11% of total CO2 equivalent emissions.

This rise in food miles has led to increases in the environmental, social and economic burdens associated with transport.

WHAT TO DO

* Buy local products at farmers markets and roadside stalls
* Support local businesses supporting regional sustainability
* Buy locally made products
* Look where ingredients came from and were it was canned, bottled or frozen.

ORGANICS AND GENETIC ENGINEERING

Certified Organic farming encourages food production that nurtures our soil through the presence of rich compost, mulch, active and diverse soil insect and worm activity, cover cropping, crop rotation, companion planting, protection pure water supply, and support for biodiversity of cropping ...and the avoidance of pesticides, herbicides, and chemical fertilisers anywhere on the property.

Organic is about increasing soil nutrient, soil stability, and diversity and abundance of soil life, reducing erosion and building soil humus: rather than the continuous slow degrading of all the above that is the lot of most arable land in Australia.

Organic is also about the bigger picture of deliberately conserving bush remnants and generally planning to improve ecological stability, diversity and integrity on land that is often in decline from past farming practices.

Organic is about sustainability and building models of sustainable farming for all agriculture in the sustainable future.

By buying organic, we provide a market place for growers who have made the future of our planet a top priority.

Red Dragon Inn organic processing supports an environmentally sustainable economy provides better nutrition, flavour and energistic quality of product. avoids any chemicals, hormones, or additives in products aids organic farm viability and helps enhance environmental quality for future generations especially water and soil purity.

Red Dragon Inn avoids as do organic processors or farmers any genetically engineered or genetically modified ingredients. Red Dragon Inn believes that unregulated commercially driven genetic engineering in agriculture is a probable ecological disaster in the making. For information go to www.geneethics.org