Cheap food at Argos (1 Viewer)

[TheSeagull]

Argos are selling 10kg of Wild Bird Seed for £7.99 and I was wondering if anyone had ever tried it (not personally but the birds). Would it be a good purchase or would I be better going for the expensive kind? RSPB or something.

 

[ChrisKten]

Argos are selling 10kg of Wild Bird Seed for £7.99 and I was wondering if anyone had ever tried it (not personally but the birds). Would it be a good purchase or would I be better going for the expensive kind? RSPB or something.

I used that seed mix for a couple of years, there's nothing wrong with it at all. The birds eat it all, no dust or rubbish left over. So if the birds eat it, and my garden is full of birds, what can be wrong with it?

The only reason I don't use it now is I get 25kg for £18.50 elsewhere.

Some here will tell you to get more expensive seed mixes, but I let the birds decide if a mix is any good.

 

[Fozzybear]

I noticed this bird seed in Argos for £7.99 the other day. Thought this morning I'll get some and they've put it up to £9.99.

Might need a good cheap supplier, normally use seed from Wilko but they're a bit depleted at the moment!

 

[jeffwode]

i got 25 kilos of mixed general feed from ebay for 17 quid, handy thing was, it was delivered next day to my door.

 

[itsallwhite]

I tend to find ebay works well for my bird feed but have noticed when i brought from a new seller the quality wasnt as good and it didnt fit in to my bird feeders as well - is there is a good consistent Uk based mail order supplier that is cheap?

 

[ChrisKten]

I tend to find ebay works well for my bird feed but have noticed when i brought from a new seller the quality wasnt as good and it didnt fit in to my bird feeders as well - is there is a good consistent Uk based mail order supplier that is cheap?

People will tell you to use certain suppliers because the seed is better, less filler etc, fresher. Don't believe any of them, including me. Try a few suppliers, just buy 1kg or similar and see what you think. If the birds eat the seed without leaving loads uneaten, and it's cheap enough, buy in bulk.

I've been getting all my bulk Seed/Monkey Nuts/Peanuts, from here for a couple of years. The birds eat it all, their numbers are increasing, and I've never had any problem with anything I've ordered.

Oh, and it's free next day delivery.

But, as I said, you'll get some saying, "go to <insert website here> it's fantastic seed", but try it yourself first.|=)|

BTW, when I typed "try it yourself first", you knew I meant the birds, right?

 

[bazdaboot]

I think the birds around where I live are a bit particular what they eat.I have tried all sorts of seed mixes, but they wont touch any of them. But peanuts, or sunflower seeds ... I can't keep up with them. They love both the black and the white and the kernels. But seed mixes.... zilch!

 

[karpman]

Hey,

Anyone tried farm shops, Use to get a lot of fishing bait from them hemp peanuts etc. Pretty sure they would sell some kind of mixed bird seed/feeds too.
Could even maybe mix and match you own, Just started with feeders this weekend so ill look into this my self.
just a thought B


karpman

 

[mcapper]

It is more expensive but I'd have to give a plug for RSPB bird food.

100% of the profit goes to conservation and the birds are happy too as it is good quality stuff.

There was an article in birds magaine a while back that gave some additional details:

The peanuts are guaranteed aflotoxin free (anything other could be a false economy if it harms the birds you are trying to help) although there are increasing problems with sourcing them. In recent times only China has been able to supply these so the RSPB is concerned about the ethics of bringing peanuts half way round the world just for bird food. Not good for the climate change agenda.

The RSPB can't source all their seed in the UK but the extra is brought in by barge from Holland to keep the carbon levels down.

So I'd suggest using RSPB and sticking to seed mixes and suet pellets etc.

M

 

[karpman]

Hey mate,

Checked there prices out etc.
Guess there is no substitute for good quality products and 100 per cent profit to the Rspb is a awesome thing, Only started last weekend using feeders so pretty new to sources, I do run on very tight budget at the moment but the Rspb stuff seems reasonable for the amounts i am feeding at the minute

Thanks for the tip:t:
As for carbon emissions and peanut fungus, Not something I'm looking to deeply into at the moment.

Regards

karpman

 

[bitterntwisted]

For me a much more significant concern than price is how the bird food is produced. If cheap sunflower seeds are a product of intensive farming abroad which deprives native wildlife of habitat, and which is then air-freighted to the UK, then it seems a rather strange way of helping the birds. I buy mine from wildlife-friendly UK farms like this one... http://www.streetendfeeds.co.uk/, who are also very cheap for bulk purchases, have excellent customer service, and deliver for free.

Graham

 

[karpman]

Hey,

Thanks for the link will defo be checking them out in more detail and no doubt be placing a order, Learning so fast will have to stay of the beer for a couple day's so it all sinks in.

Kind regards
Karpman

 

[Mary]

For me a much more significant concern than price is how the bird food is produced. If cheap sunflower seeds are a product of intensive farming abroad which deprives native wildlife of habitat, and which is then air-freighted to the UK, then it seems a rather strange way of helping the birds. I buy mine from wildlife-friendly UK farms like this one... http://www.streetendfeeds.co.uk/, who are also very cheap for bulk purchases, have excellent customer service, and deliver for free.

Graham

Thanks for this link, Graham. I can get both seeds and suet pellets from the same place, and cheaper, now! Nice one!

 

[Sandra (Taylor)]

Thanks for that link Graham. That compares well with what I'm paying at the moment. Looked at niger seed first - the goldfinches are eating it as if there's no tomorrow.

Sandra

 

[Jonathan Hare]

Found the Argos one mentioned.
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/0422970/Trail/searchtext>BIRD.htm

I got a 12.75?kg (12.something kg anyway) of bird seed from Tesco for either £9.99 or £10.99 it is a good mixture. Hopefully find out this week when I move into my new house how the birds take to it.

 

[Fozzybear]

Interesting Jonathan, the only seed Tesco here sell are little overpriced bags... Asda are astonishingly expensive too.

 

[Fozzybear]

Wilkinsons have a new offer on, two 2kilo bags of wild bird seed for £3, they also have peanuts in the same offer, not sure what size bags those were though. 12 kilo for £9 seems pretty good to me and the birds seem to like it - less mess left on the ground than with the Haithes/Bill Oddie bird seed.

 

[Guizotia]

For me a much more significant concern than price is how the bird food is produced. If cheap sunflower seeds are a product of intensive farming abroad which deprives native wildlife of habitat, and which is then air-freighted to the UK, then it seems a rather strange way of helping the birds. I buy mine from wildlife-friendly UK farms like this one... http://www.streetendfeeds.co.uk/, who are also very cheap for bulk purchases, have excellent customer service, and deliver for free.

Graham

All sunflower *hearts* come from abroad. You can't assume that because it is sold by a UK farm that it is not "a product of intensive farming abroad which deprives native wildlife of habitat, and which is then air-freighted to the UK".

I asked Street End Feeds (Really Wild Bird Company) myself and they confirmed this. Their sunflower hearts come from abroad, they didn't say where.

Even the seed mixes are likely to contain seeds that come from abroad. It is worth asking any "farm" where the components of their products come from. I don't think the farm distributors do enough to make this clear (for good economic reasons).

So again in this case we can rely on the RSPB to bring them in in the most environmentally friendly way, because of their buying power compared to a smaller distributor. And the RSPB source as much as possible from the UK of course, and of course 100% of the profits...

 

[ChrisKten]

Well, the RSPB seed is more expensive than almost any other supplier. Now if you want to buy seed, and donate to the RSPB at the same time, that's fine. But I don't necessarily agree with every project funded by the RSPB, in fact I doubt many are aware of all projects. I would much rather give money to specific causes/projects than to all.

As for where the seed is grown and how it's transported, that's another subject entirely. Not much point in carefully selecting which seed is more environmentally friendly, then buying your vegetables at Tesco.

I buy the cheapest/best quality feed that I can afford, unless I win the Lottery that won't change.

 

[Marmot]

At Aldi tomorrow they have a few birding related specials on including a 12.75kg sack of premium seed at £7.99