BRC is increasingly out of touch with industry

I can’t help but feel Stephen Robertson’s bemoaning of MPs shows the BRC to be increasingly out of touch. Few of the retailers I’ve spoken to lately dispute the fiercely competitive nature of the market or that pressure is being exerted on suppliers to ‘share the pain’.

I fully commend retailers that have taken steps to secure their supply base through dedicated chains and clear, long-term contracts. But they remain the exception rather than the rule. Even in milk, only about 20% of farmers are involved in retailer relationships.

Robertson is right that retailers aren’t the only buyers of food in the UK. But he is wrong to assume that his members all behave like saints when their activities sometimes show them up to be sinners as highlighted by the Competition Commission. It strikes me that MPs are taking a responsible approach to protecting the vulnerable in an otherwise imbalanced market.

Peter Kendall, president, NFU