Scottish farmers will be on the streets tomorrow (Saturday) asking consumers to back their call for fair trade. The action, organised by NFU Scotland, comes on the back of Farmers For Action’s three-day strike during which some farmers have withheld their produce to protest at the growing gap between supermarket prices and the price paid to them.
Farmers will be speaking to shoppers at farmers’ markets in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Perth on Saturday morning. Farmers will also be handing out leaflets at supermarkets asking shoppers to join the campaign for political action to address the misuse of supermarket power. The leaflet highlights the gap between supermarket shelf prices and farmgate prices and asks the public to sign a letter addressed to the First Minister urging him to act.
NFUS is calling for a further Competition Commission investigation into the retail sector and the introduction of an independent watchdog to police fair trade between UK supermarkets and their suppliers. NFUS is also calling for a Scottish Parliamentary Committee inquiry into the effect of supermarket power on rural development.
The union’s president John Kinnaird said: “As supermarket margins have increased, family farms have found themselves stretched to breaking point. The fact some farmers are taking unprecedented steps and going on strike must make politicians realise that if they want to secure the future supply of quality Scottish food and drink, action is required now to tackle the misuse of supermarket power.
“Our members will be taking their fair trade message direct to shoppers tomorrow. Farmers’ markets have been a huge success story and we want to thank the public for supporting them and backing quality local produce. However, they can make an even greater difference by joining the political campaign for action to address the misuse of power by the supermarkets, which account for the sale of 80 per cent of the food and drink produced in the UK.
“We’re emphasising that we are not asking supermarket shoppers to put their hands deeper in their pockets and pay more for their food. There is enough money in the shelf price to ensure everyone in the supply chain can make a living, not just the big boys at the retail end. Some relationships between supermarkets and suppliers work extremely well. However, too often that relationship is marked by fear and a completely unacceptable abuse of negotiating power - that must be addressed if family farms are to survive and Scotland’s shoppers are going to continue to have the option of buying local produce.”
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