Sainsbury’s has announced a major expansion of its long‑term farming partnerships, with a £5bn “multi-year investment” in British and Irish farm sourcing.
By 2027, the retailer said more than 2,500 farms in the UK alone would have been signed up to long-term supply deals – amounting to 3.1 million tonnes-worth of Sainsbury’s own-label fresh food
Sainsbury’s added some 60% of its own-brand suppliers of fresh produce, dairy, meat, fish and poultry would be on long-term agreements of more than five years by the end of 2026.
The move, creating “one the most extensive networks of multi-year farming agreements in the UK”, includes the expansion of long‑term agreements in soft fruit, with 62 British berry farms moving on to multi‑year contracts. The sector has historically relied on short‑term, seasonal deals.
Farm manager Charlie Burgoyne, a dairy farmer who has supplied milk to Sainsbury’s for over 15 years, welcomed the move.
“To keep our business resilient, we need the confidence to invest in our future,” Burgoyne said. “That’s why long-term partnerships, like the one we have had with Sainsbury’s for many years, are so important and vital to securing the future of the food system and British farming.
“Multi‑year agreements, underpinned by a fair cost‑of‑production model, give us the stability and confidence we need to plan ahead, invest for the future and sustain our farm for generations to come.”
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Dairy farmers were the first beneficiaries when Sainsbury’s first looked to build long-term agreements nearly 20 years ago via its Dairy Development Group in 2007. The retailer’s move to longer-term supply agreements have since expanded across eggs, chicken and other key categories.
Sainsbury’s said the deals had supported sustained investment in innovation, from advances in mushroom production to the development of the Taste the Difference Aberdeen Angus lower-carbon beef range.
Burgoyne added: “These are incredibly challenging times for farmers, with the impacts of climate change, rising input costs and global instability creating real uncertainty across the sector.”
Sainsbury’s chief executive Simon Roberts said the retailer was “proud to lead the way on long -term farming partnerships and cost of production models”.
“When farmers know what we’ll buy, at what price and for how long, they can plan, invest and keep producing the great-tasting, responsibly sourced British food our customers trust, he continued. “By expanding these long-term agreements across more of our meat, dairy, fruit and veg, we’re backing British and Irish farming for the future and bringing more homegrown food to our customers.”
He added: “This is how we protect quality, value and provenance in an uncertain world and how we help secure the future of good food for all of us.”
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