Move over, organic: the Hemsleys say it's all about 'astrological food' now
Could astrological eating be the next big food fad? According to the Hemsley sisters, it might be.
On their Channel 4 show, 'Eating Well with Hemsley and Hemsley', health food gurus Melissa and Jasmine Hemsley showed viewers how to make a full English breakfast, using only 'astrologically farmed' eggs.
What on earth is is agricultural astrology?
Known as 'biodynamic farming' or 'agricultural astrology', it is a food production method that "advises the planting, cultivating and harvesting of crops based on moon phases".
Liz Cotton, a buyer for Infinity Foods in Brighton, told the MailOnline: "Biodynamic is similar to organic but these farms are self-sufficient in compost, manure and feed for the animals.
"They use an astrological calendar to determine when to plant. It's a bit strange, but the eggs taste amazing - the yolks are bright sunset yellow and they taste better than organic."
How does it work?
Founded by Austrian scientist Rudolf Steiner in the 1920s, biodynamic farming operates under the belief that chemical farming reduces the life in the land, thus reducing the number of seeds that can be produced.
The process works by using the astrological calendar to decide when to plant certain crops each year. Daniel Hoebrichts, manager of Orchard Eggs, said: "It's about the constellation of the moon and other planets - the tides of the sea are guided by the force of the moon - other planets have forces too and the majority of plants are water based."
"It’s all about the equity of the farm. Each bird has 50 square feet of space - on organic farms they might have 3,000 birds in every barn but we wouldn’t have more than 500 in one space. All the grain in their feed has been planted according to the astrological calendar."
Does it really taste better?
The jury is still out on this one. Advocates of the method swear by it.
After a visit to Tablehurst Farm, a biodynamic farm in Sussex, Telegraph columnist Sarah Raven said: "As a former doctor and a scientist at heart, I found some of what I heard about biodynamics a little other-worldly, but I couldn't fault the growing at Tablehurst.
"Whatever one thinks about the biodynamic growing system, there's no doubt that it does produce the sort of food we should all be eating."
However, the British Egg Information Service remain unconvinced.
Amanda Cryer, a spokesperson for the service: "There is no difference in the nutritious value in eggs from different production systems and this has been shown in government tests.
"If people want to be more environmentally conscious with the types of eggs they buy, that's fine, the only difference in eggs from different production systems may be a slightly different taste or colour, but there is no difference in nutrition, even with organic."