Rex Tyler of Cooks' Delight, Berkhamsted

Cooks' Delight is an organic and biodynamic food shop in the old market town of Berkhamsted on the foot hills of the Chilterns. Rex is committed to supporting small farms, organisations and workers cooperatives. As well as the shop, Rex also runs a box scheme covering local counties.

• Can you describe a typical day in your life?
  I get up at 6am every day and work in the shop serving customers and ordering goods. In between I try to find time to write poems and speeches.

• Who are your customers and where are they?
  Thinking, caring souls anywhere in mainland Britain... including lots of children.

• Organic principles – why do they matter?
  Organic principles mean better standards for the grower and for the environment.

• What does the Soil Association mean to you?
  We share the same vision.

• What is your greatest achievement?
  Winning the Queen’s award and Business in the Community in 2001.

• If you were starting all over again, what would you do differently?
  I’d encourage more people to work alongside me – it’s hard working on your own.

• What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
  Loyalty is hard earned.

• Who or what’s your biggest inspiration?
  Rajah Banerjee of Makaibari and my wife.

• What is the key to your success?
  Never giving up and being able to change course easily.

• What do you love most about what you do?
  I’m helping to save the planet.

• What keeps you awake at night?
  Nothing, I sleep like an organic log!

• What single thing would most improve your life?
  Good health.

• What do you find most frustrating about what you do?
  Not enough regular trade and organic food becoming denatured.

• Any unusual hobbies?
  I am a silver medal toastmaster and like to sing Italian love songs and write poetry. I also speak Chinese.
  [Read Rex's poetry at www.cooksdelight.co.uk/poems.htm]

• How can the organic market be improved?
  By adopting more of the principles of biodynamics.

• How important is energy efficiency to you?
  Very important... we waste too much energy processing life out of food.

• What’s the main benefit of being organic for you?
  It safeguards growers and their families.

• What other organic ventures do you admire and why?
  Biogro in New Zealand. Their honey standards are the best in the world.

• Supermarkets – good or bad?
  Good for shareholders – bad for organic trade, unless we can change them.

• What is the biggest threat to what you do?
  Supermarket philosophy increasing to stifle me.

• What’s the best thing about organic farms?
  They care about the soil.

• I’d like to be remembered for…
  My poems, I’m filling the internet up with them.

• What is your greatest fear?
  Being eaten by a crocodile.

• What is your favourite word?
  Positive.

• What would be your ‘Desert Island’ luxury?
  A forest of Durians and a pet orang-utan to share them with.

To find out more about Cooks' Delight www.cooksdelight.co.uk
» visit www.cooksdelight.co.uk