Sainsbury’s has taken steps to increase its domestic supply of tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers to hedge against global supply chain pressures.
The retailer today said it had has signed 10-year partnership agreements with fresh produce suppliers Evesham Vale Growers and Thanet Earth.
Sainsbury’s warned extreme weather across warmer growing regions was underlining the need for supermarkets to “think differently” about the resilience of their supply chains.
It comes after The Times reported yesterday (22 July) that the supermarket had issued a cucumber shortage warning to its customers earlier this week, with the paper further reporting that extreme heat had hit growers in Spain and Morocco.
Prolonged dry weather is also having an impact on British food production with cereals, dairy and brassicas among others all suffering.
“With our changing weather, it’s more important than ever to find new, innovative solutions to make sure our customers can continue to enjoy the quality produce they want all year-round,” said Sainsbury’s category director of produce Hannah O’Reilly.
“Investing in more British production and supporting our suppliers to innovate is helping us build a stronger, more resilient supply chain in a category that has been impacted by weather-based shocks in recent years,” she added.
“By giving our brilliant British growers the certainty to invest and innovate through long-term contracts such as these with Thanet Earth and Evesham Vale Growers will help us to continue to support British farming for years to come.”
Sainsbury’s said the new agreements were among the longest in the industry and were designed to give growers the certainty needed to make long-term investments at a time of rising costs, climate volatility and growing supply pressure.
They form part of its wider commitment to invest more than £5bn in long-term agreements with over 2,400 British and Irish farms.
Additionally, the partnership with Thanet Earth (the UK’s largest single-site glasshouse complex) will enable the mult to sell British-grown cucumbers throughout winter for the first time.
“Working with Sainsbury’s in this way means we can plan ahead with more certainty and keep pushing what’s possible for British growing,” said Thanet Earth technical director Rob James.
“A good example is our investment in the technology needed to grow cucumbers through the winter, creating the right conditions for the crop and helping bring more British-grown produce to customers at a time of year when that has not previously been possible.”
The agreements will also support the supermarket’s growing tomato offering, with customer demand for the fruit growing.
Taste the Difference tomatoes generated more than £120m in sales in 2025 and five of the top 10 Taste the Difference lines across the retailer sat within the tomato category.
Evesham Vale Growers director Paul Faulkner added: “Having the confidence and certainty that comes with a long-term agreement allows us to look ahead to the future and invest in our business, build on the number of British grown tomatoes already on Sainsbury’s shelves, extend availability and ensure customers can enjoy more British-grown produce.”
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