The Power Of Supermarkets And Changing Attitudes?

More and more concerns have been raised about the impact of the supermarket giants both on food production as well as on workers rights.

A recent report by War on Want and the British GMB, investigating the case of Wal-Mart (ASDA), shows how the relentless pursuit of supermarkets of the lowest possible prices has a negative impact on the supermarkets local communities as well as their suppliers, often based in the poorest countries of the world.

A few years ago, the supermarket retailer Safeway (now owned by Asda AKA Wal-mart) sent letters to their farmer suppliers asking for a contribution of £20,000 per product line, in order to improve marketing of the products.  They went on to invoice their suppliers for these sums.  Supermarkets have tended to only do business with the largest scale suppliers at the lowest cost wherever they may be located.  Next time you go to the supermarket take a closer look at the food labels, you will see New Zealand lamb and vegetables from Israel.  But this is not what most shoppers would choose -- when asked, they say they prefer British farm food.  Supermarkets are moving towards this as many are now offering vegetable and meat box schemes stocked only with local and often organic food.  Many small firms have spent years building organic box schemes and organic delivery into a viable business only for supermarkets to jump in on the act as it becomes more mainstream.

Britains supermarkets are damaging British business, are bad for consumers and bad for the environment.  Farmers and consumers are paying the price of its uncontrolled expansion here and overseas.  MPs must act now to curb the growing market power of supermarkets and ensure that Britains booming supermarket industry does not kill off farmers, consumer choice and the traditional British high street.

The UK Competition Commission has been called upon to look at the actions of supermarkets which many say are damaging almost everything that they touch.

Tesco controls nearly one third of the UK grocery market, setting the standard across the retail sector.  But while the company boasts about its commitment to fair trade and corporate responsibility, a new report from Friends of the Earth shows that Tescos practices are putting many UK farmers out of business;  while on the high street, some 2,000 independent stores went out of businesses in the last year alone, unable to compete with promotions and planning and taxation policies which favour the multiples over smaller shops.

One in five people think that supermarkets are most influential when planning decisions get made, over the council or local people.  Often people cannot get obtain planning permission to build an extension yet the supermarkets are often granted permission to build huge stores the size of football stadiums

But, things are changing for the better -

Supermarkets are trialing having tractors deliver goods straight to the supermarket door to save on food miles.

Tesco are installing solar panels and using renewable energy in certain stores to show how green they are becoming.

Waitrose has started its own fair-trade scheme.  The cash has been raised as part of the food retailers initiative to return a sizeable proportion of profits it earns on sales of citrus fruits to the farmers who grow them.

Ikea is to become the UKs first major retailer to regularly charge customers for plastic bags, to try and tackle waste and environmental damage.

The success of Marks & Spencers ethical marketing drive that urged shoppers to "look behind the label" has dwarfed all its previous advertising campaigns, according to research from a leading City brokerage.

Supermarket Sainsburys is to sell more than 500 of its own-brand products in compostable packs instead of plastic as it seeks to cut packaging waste.  It says the scheme, already trialled on some of its organic range, will save 3,550 tonnes of plastic a year.

Is this a genuine change in attitudes by the supermarkets or merely a change in public relations direction to ensure they get all the green pounds that tend to be spent in local markets and shops?  Ill let you decide.

What Is Fairtrade Food?

The Fairtrade Foundation exists to ensure that producers are guaranteed a minimum price for their goods irrespective of world prices.

This means that Fairtrade goods are often more expensive in the UK than those without the Fairtrade logo.  Although people are now arguing that supermarkets are fuelling their excessive profits by adding large mark-ups to these products.  This premium that the producer charges covers the basic food, housing, health and education needs of the local communities in countries such as India and Brazil.  The Foundation awards a consumer label, the Fairtrade Mark, to products which meet internationally recognised standards of Fairtrade.  It is the only such certification in the UK.

Examples of products:

• Fairtrade coffee
• Fairtrade Tea
• Fairtrade Chocolate
• Fairtrade Bananas
• Fairtrade Honey
• Fairtrade Sugar
• Fairtrade Fruit Juice
• Fairtrade Wine and Snacks

The list of goods certified Fairtrade is growing daily as is the range of products available.  The co-op changed all their own brand chocolate to Fairtrade a few years ago and now all the other big supermarkets are beginning to move into the Fairtrade market.  Nestle have just released a Fairtrade brand.  There has been huge controversy over this as many people are asking how a company that is subject to a boycott can pertain to have Fairtrade and therefore ethical principles?

Why buy Fairtrade?

Millions of small farmers around the world cannot get enough money to feed their families, send their children to school or invest just a few pounds into their farm.  This is because people want to buy the cheapest goods possible and don't think about the people that working in poor condition and often receive less than £1 per day in wages.

Buying products that display the Fairtrade logo ensures that the producers of products such as tea, coffee and chocolate receive a decent income.  Rather than being hit by the ever-changing price of their product on the world market, or being fleeced by a middleman who takes a chunky share of the profits, producers in a Fair Trade scheme are guaranteed a decent, stable price for their produce.

By buying Fair trade products that buy direct from farmers at better prices, consumers are improving the lives of producers all over the world.  In Eithiopia, farmers can often get more then twice the price for their fair trade coffee then those that sell it on the open market.  This extra money enables the farmers to educate their children and to break the cycle of poverty.

Many people struggle to find a reason not to support Fairtrade.  Fairtrade is about better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers.  Fair trade is not about charity, it is about settling the imbalance which exists.

How do I know its Fairtrade?

Look for the Fairtrade Mark when you shop and make the choice to support small farmers and workers in the developing world, and encourage your workplace to switch to Fairtrade tea and coffee.

Should I Buy Fairtrade, Organic Or Local Food?

Again, I find myself torn apart with choices when deciding which is the most ethical, eco friendly and/or healthy option when it comes to shopping for food and non-food products.

Should I buy food and products that support workers in Third World by buying Fairtrade labelled products even though these goods normally travel thousands of miles from Africa, South America or South East Asia?  What if these foods were produced with the use of pesticides and additives?  It makes sense then to look for and to buy Fairtrade, organic food to both help the producers in the Third World and fulfil my lifestyle choice to eat healthy and additive/pesticide free food.  Thankfully, many producers are now wising up to this dilemma by increasingly producing organic and Fairtrade labelled products.  I am currently using Fairtrade, organic t-bags at home!  Now comes another important question, should I buy Fairly Traded organic sugar from Kenya that has travelled thousands of miles, or should I buy apples grown in the UK (ideally from a farmers market) that have only travelled only a few hundred miles which means less carbon dioxide and other nasty emissions from the lorries that you see constantly on the motorways in the UK?  Buying UK products not only ensures less food miles but also supports local farmers, communities and economies.  Unfortunately, choice is often limited and can be more expensive then food produced in other countries ... ... ... Decisions, decisions, it's probably best to abstain from eating and give your choice making brain a rest!

But I can safely say that I make attempts to avoid food or products that have travelled from far away destinations such as Australia even if they are organic!  Next time you are in the supermarket or wherever you buy your food from check the labels and you will be surprised by how far your food has travelled.  Also look at the amount of unnecessary wrapping such as individually wrapped peppers, mushrooms and kiwi fruit in wrapped boxes.  When I buy from the local market I tell them to throw it all into one bag, the customer next to me often has 10 individually wrapped portions of fruit and veg.  That's 11 (10 plus one big plastic bag) bags into the landfill site that day.  For maximum eco efficiency we need to be using jute or other bags made from recycled materials and putting all the loose food into that.

For recycled bags, Fairtrade and Organic companies, products and food see GuideMeGreen.