I HAVE been reading with interest the correspondence regarding the proposed housing and retail developments in Tavistock and surrounding area.

In relation to supermarkets; this trend surely lost impetus a while ago with the discussions on avoiding food surfeit and wastage, obesity and excess packaging — and grow your own fresh produce for flavour and health (and enjoyment) — along with farmers' markets and farm shops.

There is no shortage of food shops in Tavistock, indeed, we are lucky to already have such a choice, including award winning Morrisons, good value for money Lidl, two friendly Co-op stores, the Spar shops with special offers, the open late local petrol stations and post office shops, as well as our daily pannier market, individual specialist shops such as Crebers and the popular cheese shop — and the fortnightly farmers' market with fresh produce at reasonable prices.

Are we not being misled into thinking we need yet another supermarket, when it is only a short drive to Tesco, Roborough, or Sainsburys, Plymouth, or Waitrose, Okehampton?

I would like to point out that in this country there is a 24hr consumer detox day — a buy nothing day — when we are encouraged not o spend (or buy anything else) but to use and appreciate what we already have — to cut down on waste and to save money.

Monty Don, famous gardener and soil specialist, has been encouraging us to grow our own supplies of fresh produce for convenience and fun, and to cut down on our carbon footprints, as well as expense, especially during a recession.

Allotments are fashionable and in demand. In America — a recent trend on new housing developments is to include a space which can be cultivated by a local farmer (as well as the locals themselves) to provide fresh produce within easy walking distance of their homes.

Compare this with the rather overcrowded and cramped conditions at the new Whitchurch housing development with further such housing proposed.

I, too — like Chris Smerdon (Letters, August 22) — feel sorry for the bus driver finding his way down the narrow roads, and what of the parking for the new residents?

I do feel, and especially during a recession, that we should think carefully about what we already have, and use it wisely, and protect our valuable and worthwhile heritage and identity as a stannary and market town in a World Heritage Site close to Dartmoor.

Susan L Wallace

Downlea

Tavistock