Asda is investing £27 million in the next phase of its fresh food quality improvement initiative.
Three times as many quality assurance inspectors are now operating across Asda depots and on its suppliers’ farms than a year ago as part of the investment.
And the acquisition by Wal-Mart of International Produce (IPL) has given fresh produce quality a boost, Asda claimed. IPL employs 1,000 staff in the UK and globally and has recently extended its remit to cover Asda wine supply.
Asda chief executive’s Andy Clarke said: “Having successfully completed the rollout of Chosen By You we are now embarking on the next phase of our quality programme. We are investing £27m introducing market-leading quality specifications across all of our fresh meat and produce.
“And through a combination of significantly more quality controls on our farms and in our depots, and by removing unnecessary middlemen along the way, we’ve been able to enhance the quality of our fresh food and keep prices low for customers.”
Last year, the Leeds-based retailer invested more than £100m revamping its entire core range of Asda brand food. According to market analyst Kantar Worldpanel, Chosen By You is now the fastest growing mid-tier own label brand in the UK, representing some 80 per cent of Asda’s own label food sales, equivalent to annual sales of between £8-9 billion.
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