Supermarkets attacked over sustainability
Paul Eccleston, The Telegraph 16 Feb 08;
The Government will have to crackdown on the big High Street supermarkets if it is to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing Britain today, according to a new report.
It will fail to meet key targets on health, waste, climate change and fair trade unless it harnesses the enormous power of the supermarkets, the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC) claims.
In its report Green, Healthy and Fair the SDC says too many supermarket products and practices are unhealthy, unjust and unsustainable.
Supermarkets as the gatekeepers of the food system were in a powerful position to create a greener, healthier, fairer food system through their influence on supply chains, consumer behaviour and their own operations.
The report says the government must develop a much clearer long-term strategy and work closely with the supermarkets if the challenges on health, the environment and fair trade are to be met.
The SDC's review of the government's role in supporting sustainable supermarket food finds that:
* 5-a-day public health messages cannot succeed while high-calorie, low nutrient processed foods are promoted aggressively, making fresh produce appear expensive and unappealing.
* Obesity and waste are being fuelled by multi-buy promotions, over-packaging and non-recyclable packaging
* Climate change policies aimed at reducing emissions from supermarket operations fail to address transport issues involving food deliveries and customer car use.
The SDC, which advises the Government on sustainability, says more than 70 per cent of UK groceries are sold by four supermarket chains - Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons.
The food chain contributes around one-fifth of total UK greenhouse gas emissions and is a major source of avoidable waste.
Obesity and overweight currently costs the economy a staggering £10 billion a year and is forecast to reach £50 billion by 2050.2
Many peoples' livelihoods in rural communities, in the UK and in the developing world, depend upon getting access to, and a fair price from, the UK's food system.
While the Government maintained an official 'hands-off' approach to supermarkets, the SDC study found 19 Whitehall departments with almost 100 policy responsibilities related to supermarkets and food.
Conflicting policies between departments made it impossible to achieve targets. As an example the Department of Health advice to eat more fish was cutting across attempts to preserve endangered fish stocks.
And supermarkets and consumers were confused over whether they should buy 'local' produce or help poor farmers in Kenya by buying airfreighted green beans.
Professor Tim Lang, Commissioner at the SDC, said: "Government cannot resolve the problems of obesity, waste or climate change alone. Given the enormous influence wielded by supermarkets, working with them effectively is essential.
"There are many areas where the government and retailers are already working together, but government needs to be more ambitious. With public scrutiny of retailers' behaviour increasing, many supermarkets are keen to work with government to develop a green, healthy and fair food system.
"In fact, our research with supermarkets has shown that in areas such as climate change or recycling policy, they are often frustrated by the lack of clarity or long-term strategy on which they can plan for the future."
Key areas identified in the study included:
Waste
The UK has one of the worst records on dumping waste in landfill in Europe, and UK homes produce 5.2m tonnes of food packaging waste and 6.7m tonnes of food waste every year. Current packaging legislation is vague and poorly enforced.
It says the government must develop an ambitious packaging strategy to follow its waste strategy
Nutrition and obesity
Processed food is a key factor in obesity and diet-related diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease and stroke. A healthy and seasonal diet, rich in fruit and vegetables, and containing less processed food and meat is better for people and the planet, leading to lower greenhouse gas emissions and less impact on ecosystems.
The report says the Government must use its influence to ensure supermarkets reformulate products and to shift the balance of promotions towards healthier products. A single, mandatory front-of-pack system of labelling is also essential.
Climate change
The food industry is the largest contributor of greenhouse gas accounting for 20 per cent of all UK emissions.
The report says the Government must set a clear agenda for reducing emissions across the whole food chain through leading to at least 60 per cent reductions by 2050.
Fair supply chains
The supermarkets have a poor record of treating suppliers fairly and the Office of Fair Trading Code of Practice is weak and not fit for purpose.
The report says the government should safeguard fairness in supply and an enforceable definition of 'local' food brought and promote fair trade and environmental sustainability.
Ecosystems
Demands of the food system were causing deforestation, devastation of fish stocks and soil degradation and even in the UK, intensive agriculture was affecting biodiversity and contributing to the destruction of hedgerows and wildlife. The SDC wants the government to draw up a system of universal sustainability standards for food production.
Water
2,000 litres of water was needed to produce the food consumed daily by the average and climate change and increased demand meant that water could no longer be considered a low-cost resource. A 'water footprint' system was needed to audit embedded water in products and supply chains.
