What’s a fair price to pay for a punnet of strawberries or half a dozen apples? How much should supermarkets pay suppliers and, in turn, how much should they charge the customer? Complaints from UK farmers of ill-treatment by the big four supermarkets continue to surface in the press.
Squeezed on price and forced to take the financial hit on seasonal promotions, it seems that the UK farming community has become a dumping ground for supermarket risk. Need to shift a load of ripening tomatoes quickly? Slap on a 2 for 1 sticker and pay the farmer less – that’s the approach that producers say supermarkets are taking. This isn’t just farmers grumbling – the NFU says that one dairy farmer has gone out of business everyday for the past decade. Some might have been inefficient farmers ill-equipped to run a small business, but the sheer scale of closures points to more than that. It’s always the extreme examples that come to light in the press, but even the current government, the Edward Scissorhands of red tape, has been concerned enough to establish a groceries supply code of practice to give a farmers a formal mechanism for complaint.
To give supermarkets their due, they play a crucial role in getting farm produce to urban consumers quickly. And fresh produce is an inherently risky business, no matter who producers are selling to: farmers’ markets are full of stalls racing to sell large volumes cheaply, during the “ripe but not too ripe” window.
So what’s the answer? A several-pronged attack. Toughening up the grocers’ code is a start. Reports suggest a culture of fear at the moment where farmers are too afraid to speak out and this must be addressed. Greater risk sharing, through transparent pricing agreements, is also key. Consumers can change things too – if awareness is high enough. Supermarkets will do consumer bidding so the NFU and co need to ratchet up their campaigning.
Will all this result in higher prices for consumers? Perhaps, if the costs are too large for supermarkets to swallow internally. And yes, that’s bad news for low income earners. But farmers cannot continue to shoulder the costs. There’s help available for families in “fuel poverty” – households that spend more than 10% of their income on gas and electricity. To create sustainable food supply chains, and to address other global factors impacting on food prices, perhaps a similar model could be adopted for those in “food poverty”.
Ita is a Senior Consultant at Corporate Citizenship. Contact her at ita.mcmahon@corporate-citizenship.com to discuss community, reporting and stakeholder engagement.
Oxfam sends out urgent food price warning
Oxfam has launched a campaign to fight world hunger after warning that food prices could more than double in the next 20 years if no action is taken towards improving the international food system, already failing to feed nearly one billion people every day. Poorest people will be hardest hit, according to the group’s new report “Growing a Better Future”, as they already spend up to 80% of their income on food alone. To combat this forecast, Oxfam has launched the Grow Campaign in 45 countries, aiming to eradicate hunger. The charity will expose governments whose failed policies they will say are upholding the broken food system and companies who they claim benefit and lobby to maintain the system.
Global consumers are expanding their green purchasing interest according to the ImagePower® Global Green Brands Study conducted by three WPP agencies ( Cohn & Wolfe, Landor Associates and Penn Schoen Berland Associates) and firm Esty Environmental Partners. The survey polled over 9000 people in 8 countries to conclude that 60% of consumers globally want to buy from environmentally responsible companies and consumers in developing countries believed that green products have a higher inherent value. The list of perceived green brands according to the survey is as follows; Seventh Generation Whole Foods Tom’s of Maine Burt’s Bees Trader Joe’s The Walt Disney Company S.C. Johnson Dove Apple Starbucks, Microsoft (tied)
A new accreditation scheme, developed to asses how well financial tools help customers to control their money and achieve their financial goals, has awarded marks to four account providers for their financial products. The scheme developed by not- for profit Fairbanking Foundation assesses products by conducting research to confirm that a significant percentage of customers using the product found it helpful in improving their financial well being and achieving money saving goals. The scheme also looks at complaints the bank has received regarding the product. The mark is granted in a 3,4 or 5 star variant. So far only four products have won the award; RBS/NatWest’s ‘Your Savings Goal,’ Saffron Building Society’s Goal Saver, Secure TrustBank’s Current Account and thinkbanking’s Current Account.
American cigarettes to display health warning images
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has revealed nine graphic health warnings required to cover every pack of cigarettes sold in the United States and appear in every cigarette advert from September 2012. As part of the biggest change to cigarette labels in the United States in more than 25 years, the graphics will show the negative consequences of smoking and be accompanied by warning text and the smoking termination phone number, 1-800-QUIT-NOW. The images include rotting gums and teeth, cigarette smoke emerging from a tracheotomy hole and a sewn up corpse of a smoker. They were chosen after the results from an 18,000 person study and comments from a variety of groups which included tobacco retailers, health professionals and academics.
An app to encourage consumers to grow there own food
The environmental charity BTCV has developed an iPhone app to encourage consumers to grow their own fruit and vegetables. The application will calculate how much produce could be grown in a space; either in gardens, balconies or plots. The application will also calculate how many food miles and money the consumers can save by growing their own food. Additionally users of the app will be able to access home grown recipes from well known celebrities such as Alan Titchmarsh, and seasonal planting tips. The application is part of BTCV’s carbon army campaign which aims to encourage more people to grow their own food as a response to climate change.
Mobile app provides on-the-go access to ingredient lists
A new mobile app will allow consumers to access the ingredients of products while they shop. The application, developed by Clorox, manufacturer of products including Burt’s Bees and Brita, will permit customers to use their phones to scan barcodes of products, and be taken immediately to a website listing the products ingredients. The application is launched in partnership with the website. The initiative builds on Clorox’s existing Ingredients Inside programme which aims to provide transparent easy to use information to consumers. The tools will be available later this year and is primarily focussed on iPhone users (nearly a third of consumers in the United States.)
Marks and Spencer launch the Forever Fish campaign Marks and Spencer have launched a new three year long campaign to help consumers and their children learn more about fish, clean our British beaches and protect UK marine life. Activitries of the Forever Fish programme will include developing an educational programme for primary schools and promote lesser known, sustainably sourced fish to customers.
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