Hats off to Tesco CEO Philip Clarke last week for walking into the lion’s den and facing up to 1,000 angry farmers at the NFU conference.

Clarke was in almost apologetic form as he admitted the supermarket had not always treated farmers as well as it should and promised to change all that. He had a series of initiatives to hand including minimum two-year contracts for all suppliers who want them, the rollout of supplier working groups into horticulture and the establishment of an independent panel to monitor its behaviour.

Tesco had already taken steps to reduce the potential volatility of Clarke’s appearance by announcing moves to increase its British meat sourcing earlier in the day.

It’s easy to criticise supermarkets, but Clarke did exactly what many people want to see – he put himself in the spotlight and made himself accountable to suppliers. The initiatives he announced are welcome and should both bring the supply chain together and lead to more stability for producers.

Clarke stopped short of saying Tesco wouldn’t push for the lowest price, but if working more closely with growers means it gets a better understanding of what makes a supply chain profitable, then that can only be a good thing.

Let’s hope other supermarket bosses are taking note.