Sainsbury’s chief executive Simon Roberts has warned that “well-intentioned but inconsistent” government policy could damage the UK’s farming sector.
Writing in The Times, he described the UK food system as “at a crossroads,” as government policy intended to help drive sustainable farming practices amid “environmental challenges such as climate change and biodiversity loss” could instead harm Britain’s food production.
Roberts explained that “concerns about the direction of policy combined with the system of farm payments post-Brexit have discouraged producers from investing.”
While he acknowledged the “need to make our food system more sustainable“, he said that the government’s current approach “risks inadvertently reducing the level of UK production,” which he said will affect capacity and “lead to more imported food.”
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Moving forward, “we need a policy framework which supports producers to sustain sufficient output in the UK, while encouraging biodiversity, reducing carbon and delivering regenerative farming to secure our food supply,” Roberts explained.
However, he added that while government policy is vital, other factors also play into the change required, including UK supermarkets, which “have the scale to make a difference”.
“Historically the relationship between supermarkets and their suppliers has too often been too short-term and not built sufficiently on long-term partnership,” he said, adding that “this approach won’t work anymore”.
He said that Sainsbury’s is moving towards more longer-term agreements in key supply chains, giving farmers and suppliers “the confidence to invest for the long term and improve their sustainability.”
Roberts noted that with customers “stretched” budgets, “the answer can’t be to put up prices.”
Instead, he said that Sainsbury’s remains committed to helping shoppers make “healthier and more sustainable choices and choose more British food.”
Last month, the grocer launched a dedicated ‘Best of British’ page on its website to champion British grown and produced products.
The move makes it the largest supermarket to offer the section online, which includes over 450 100% British-sourced grocery products, including popular produce, meat, dairy, eggs and chilled essentials.
