How much should we be prepared to pay for our food?

How much should we be prepared to pay for our food?Image source, Reece BuchananImage caption, Jules Bal (right) set up Wee Knob of Butter five years ago with his business partner Kieran WoodsByKevin KeaneScotland environment, energy and rural affairs correspondentPublishedJust nowJules Bal says he has noticed a change in the way Scots regard their relationship with food and thinks people are increasingly prepared to pay extra for it.The 34-year-old French national, who co-owns a small artisanal butter manufacturing firm in Glasgow, is among a chorus of people concerned about the push for cheaper food to address the cost-of-living crisis.He says that in his homeland there is much more focus on quality and that people are most concerned about where the product originates and what it tastes like.It's an argument that appears to run counter to recent calls to make some foods more affordable. In its recent manifesto for the Holyrood election the SNP promised a price cap on "a basket of essential food items" including bread, milk and eggs.The pledge was criticised by farmers and food producers, but the Scottish government said it had a "public health responsibility" to provide an affordable nutritious diet.Image caption, The butter is hand made and supplied to high-end restaurants across ScotlandJules was born in the French city of La Rochelle - which sits on the coast of the Bay of Biscay - and moved to Scotland at the age of 14.He was taught by his father who worked as a chef in "high-end" restaurants so he "grew up in a kitchen".Wee Knob of Butter was created in 2021 with his friend Kieran Woods and began with them selling their product once a month at a market. Their butter is now supplied to a range of exclusive Scottish restaurants, is sold by mail order and is even served on the Royal Scotsman pullman train."In France, we like to take our time with our food," Jules said. "We like to have a strong relations...