After the disappointment of England’s loss at the World Cup on Wednesday, the good news is the weather is about to get a bit cooler and we are about to get a new prime minister. Labour’s ‘special conference’ took place in London earlier today, at which Andy Burnham became the new leader of the party before taking on the job of leading the country on Monday.

The incoming PM has a burgeoning in-tray, but the big question for the food & drink industry is whether this sector will finally get the attention it deserves.  

As argued in our Saturday Essay this week, food is where the cost of living and changing climate collide. With the long-promised food strategy still in development, there is a chance for Burnham to put the industry on his priority list and make a real difference for farmers, retailers, suppliers and customers. 

One area where the government is not waiting for Burnham is energy drinks. Long-delayed plans to ban their sale to under-16s will come into force in April next year, when it will be illegal to sell drinks containing more than 150mg of caffeine per litre to anyone under 16 across all retailers and in vending machines. 

Another area where campaigners are looking for change from government is the prominence of healthy food in supermarkets. A cross-party inquiry by MPs has called on Burnham to “stand up” to the food industry, whose lobbying it accuses of “delaying and watering down” policies on obesity. 

Speaking of supermarkets, there was a major focus on Asda this week. An analysis of Assosia data showed how the retailer is flipping its promotional game to focus on multibuys. In fact, as a proportion of deals Asda now has more multibuy offers than any of its rivals. 

Another investigation, in conjunction with Ipsos, found that Asda does appear to have started a much-vaunted journey to better harmonise its convenience pricing with its superstores. However, despite more price matching its convenience premium has edged up over the course of this year 

This week also brought news of changes to store working hours for Asda staff, as well as warnings about how recent changes to the hours of security staff could affect Asda stores. 

And elsewhere with the supermarkets, we spoke to insiders about Tesco’s possible plans to sell off its last foreign operations, in central Europe. 

Heatwave repercussions 

The ongoing heatwave is still in having repercussions in food. Arable farmers have warned of potential shortages, with some in the east of England seeing production decrease by almost 50%. And with no rainfall in the immediate future, there could be long-term problems. 

2 Sisters has had to cease operations at one of its plants due to a lack of water. South West Water has reduced the amount going into the site to offset water supply issues but the level is so low that the site cannot run. The poultry industry is calling for government action as this could have significant knock on effects on food security. 

Elsewhere, tea giant Tata Consumer Products has made a second attempt to launch into food in the UK with the introduction of an instant noodle brand called Wok’d. The Tetley and Teapigs supplier said the range of HFSS-compliant microwaveable noodle bowls were “designed to meet increasing demand for convenient lunch and dinner solutions”. Tata had “a global ambition to become a broader business beyond our core of tea, coffee and salt”, said Simon Fisher, head of Tata Consumer Products UK & Ireland. 

And speaking of comebacks, BrewDog founder and former CEO James Watt has launched a bid to seize back control of the Scottish beer business, just months after its distressed sale to US pharmaceutical giant Tilray Brands. Writing on LinkedIn, Watt said his new beer business, Second Best, had submitted a formal offer to Tilray to buy back the brewery he founded alongside Martin Dickie in 2007.  

Guacamole brand Holy Moly outlined global ambitions with a plan to work with avocado supplier Westfalia Fruit. The dips challenger sold a sizeable stake to an entity known as HMF SPV. The Grocer was unable to clarify exactly who is behind this special purpose vehicle, but we do know Westfalia’s CEO, CFO and chief growth and strategy officer all joined the Holy Moly board following the deal. And Westfalia will “collaborate” with Holy Moly to boost its sourcing power and give access to its international infrastructure. 

Retail media in the spotlight 

This week in features, we investigated the rarely acknowledged friction arising around retail media. Supermarkets talk it up as an opportunity for brands to connect directly with consumers, but suppliers contacted by The Grocer reported intense pressure to buy into retail media as part of their relationship with supermarkets, with one even describing it as “a dressed-up listing fee”. So, is the promised ‘win-win’ really achievable? 

Meanwhile, this week’s big interview profiles a real titan of the food and drink industry. Off the back of his Grocer Cup win at this month’s The Grocer Gold Awards, Alex Whitehouse explained how he took Premier Foods from the debt-stricken doldrums to the forward-thinking, innovative brand leadership of today. That impressive performance continued as the group reported strong trading in its first quarter.  

And in our spirits & RTDs report, we explained how ready-to-drink is the hottest booze in grocery – thanks to a heady mix of flavour innovation, unconventional packaging, nostalgia and price-sensitivity.   

 As ever, if you have any thoughts, comments or feedback on our coverage, please do email at sarah.vizard@thegrocer.co.uk. And here’s to a Spanish weekend.

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