Waitrose and Co-op have both taken aim at the meat sourcing credentials of their rivals by reinforcing their commitment to 100% British beef.
Morrisons became the latest retailer to stock imported beef earlier this month after it launched a new tertiary brand called Limited Edish – sourcing beef steaks from either the UK or Australia.
The move, breaking Morrisons’ 100% British beef commitment, was described by the retailer as a “trial” designed to smooth out supply fluctuations. However, it provoked an angry response from farming groups, with NFU deputy president David Exwood slamming Morrisons’ “outrageous” behaviour, and criticising it for “blurring the difference by calling it ‘Australian or British’”.
It follows a decision by Asda to stock Uruguayan beef last month under a new Grass & Grill brand, which it stressed did not constitute a break in its 100% British or Irish beef commitment, which applied only to own label.
Sainsbury’s, meanwhile, recently began selling New Zealand beef products, though it stressed the NPD, made up of kebabs and burgers, represented less than 0.1% of its total beef offering.
In the wake of these moves, and amid mounting concern British sourcing commitments are slipping, Waitrose’s head of agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries Jake Pickering this week said such decisions “undermine the industry’s credibility with the farming community, contradicting pledges to source 100% British at a time when British farming needs our support more than ever before”.
Read more: Are trade deals weakening British sourcing pledges?
As British farmers grappled with rising costs, labour challenges and policy uncertainty it was “seriously disappointing to see retailers backing away from promises they made to their customers”, added Pickering, in an exclusive comment piece for The Grocer.
“We won’t be following suit,” he said. “You sometimes have to pay more to source higher-quality British products but the long-term cost of undermining our farmers will be much higher,” Pickering warned.
“We will continue to support British farming. We mean it when we make a promise. All our fresh beef, lamb, chicken, eggs and pork is 100% British, raised to the highest welfare standards by Waitrose farmers we’ve built trusted, long-term relationships with, some for more than 40 years.”
His comments echo those of Aldi, whose UK&I CEO Giles Hurley called out Sainsbury’s earlier this month, noting: “That’s from a supermarket which has a British beef commitment.
“All our wagyu beef kebabs are 100% British wagyu, and we won’t compromise on that,” Hurley told The Grocer.
Co-op this week also waded into the debate, using the relaunch of its premium steak range to “reinforce our unwavering commitment to British agriculture and sourcing 100% British beef”.
Morrisons under fire over Aussie beef listing, as it breaks 100% British pledge
Now was “not the time to be stepping back on vital sourcing standards and while others seem to be doing exactly that, at Co-op, we remain as committed to British farmers today as ever. It’s what our members and customers expect from us”, said Co-op Food MD Matt Hood.
The retailer said it had “invested heavily into its beef and dairy supply chain over the past two years” – most recently announcing a new £820,000 fund designed to support and reward farmers for reducing carbon emissions and promoting nature to help drive innovation, promote productivity and improve climate resilience.
Farmers were “the backbone of the UK’s food supply and championing British on our shelves has never been more important”, Hood added.
Co-op’s revamped Aberdeen Angus steaks, sold via in its Irresistible premium own label range, use cross-bred beef sired from a pure-bred Aberdeen Angus bull.
Available in stores now, the steaks are aged for 28 days and are available in three premium cuts – sirloin, fillet and ribeye beef, sourced from Red Tractor farms in Co-op’s Farming Group.
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