Supermarket Chain Drops Red Tractor Logo
UK - The British supermarket chain, Sainsbury's, is to phase out the use of the Red Tractor logo that guarantees products produced on UK farms to specific assurance standards.
18 October 2012
2 minute read
The supermarket chain said that customers had told it that too many logos were confusing.
"So we will be phasing out the use of the Red Tractor logo on pack. We will still use the Red Tractor standards as part of our wider sourcing standards," the company statement said.
However, the move has brought a backlash from some parts of the British farming industry.
The British Poultry Council said: "BPC is extremely disappointed in Sainsbury's decision to drop the Red Tractor logo from their products. A large majority of British poultry production is done under the Red Tractor poultry scheme which ensures high production standards for poultry meat.
"Poultry farmers are rightly proud of their production standards and it is therefore regrettable that Sainsbury's should decide to deprive consumers of that choice."
However, Sainsbury's in their statement said that suggesting it was a step back from supporting British farmers was far from the truth.
"We are actually stepping up our commitment. We aim to double our sales of British food by 2020. Over the last five years we've invested £40 million into British farming, for example paying our Dairy Development Group farmers a premium for good animal husbandry and environmental practices well above what is defined by Red Tractor.
"In August we led the way in paying our dedicated pork producers a premium to reflect rising feed costs. Only last month we announced a new £1 million agricultural fund to support British farmers, and we were recently awarded for our leadership and innovation in retail by Compassion in World Farming," the company said.
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