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Article: From Camden squat to City Hall: the Mayor's green ambassador
- Article from:
- The Evening Standard (London, England)
- Article date:
- January 12, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2009 Evening Standard - London. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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A FORMER squatter who started his company with cash found on a
London street has become one of Boris Johnson's "green ambassadors".
Alex Smith founded Alara Wholefoods, which sells organic muesli,
in 1975 while living in a squat in Camden.
He did not use money, collected unsold food and scavenged from
New Covent Garden Market.
But when Mr Smith found [pounds]2 on the street, he used it to
buy entry to the market and started selling the waste food he picked
up.
The company began marketing muesli from the squat, made by using
the waste fruit and vegetables and buying organic oatmeal.
Alara, now 33 years old, has a turnover of more than [pounds]4
million, selling almost 200 varieties to ...