The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has called for a full and honest debate about food and produce labelling, in response to the government’s food strategy unveiled by DEFRA secretary Hilary Benn at the Oxford Farming Conference.
It is widely recognised the distance that a product has travelled is not a reliable indicator of its environmental impact. To discern the true carbon footprint of a product, one has to measure the mode of transportation and also the production process.
Christopher Snelling, head of global supply chain policy at the FTA, said: “By fixating on ‘country of origin’ as an indicator of a product’s environmental credentials we are not giving consumers an accurate picture. Method of production, for example heated greenhouses, often has a far bigger impact than miles travelled on a product’s carbon footprint.
“If consumers are given a misleading impression it will only lead to token gestures towards ‘going green’, rather than real results.
“By deterring people from buying produce from Africa or Asia we risk penalising millions trying to make a living in the developing world.”
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