Afterwaking up to newspaper splashes this morning accusing him of blaming 'fussy' Tesco customers for the retailer's fresh produce waste, Matt Simister has hit back.
The supermarket's food sourcing director's comments were made at a House of Lords inquiry into food waste yesterday, where Tesco was on hand to give evidence alongside representatives of Waitrose.
Simister told the Lords committee that UK customers “always pick the cream of the crop”, forcing stores to bin thousands of tonnes of old or misshapen fruit or vegetables.
But, in a statement released today, Simister said: 'In the UK, millions of customers pass through our doors each day, so we know a great deal about the shopping habits of our customers. We understand, from the nearly 90 years that we’ve been serving customers, how shoppers shop and why they make the choices they make.
'We know that if you put out a box of apples and they are all of the same quality but some look better than others, at the end of the day it will be less perfect-looking apples that are left over. We’re not saying that’s right or wrong and we‘re certainly not criticising the choices our customers make or calling them fussy – despite what some headlines have said. My point was that these choices happen, we observe it every day, and they are part of the complex challenge of trying to reduce waste.
'One of the things the committee asked was why we don’t sell wonky veg. I was very happy to correct that myth. We do. For a number of years we’ve stocked so-called ‘wonky veg’ in our Everyday Value range – it’s the same great quality but it’s in a range of shapes and sizes. But I believe that we can do more than that, which is why I also talked about some of the other ways we are looking to reduce food waste.'
He added: 'This isn’t about blaming anyone – we recognise that our scale means we can make a positive difference and help to solve a problem. That’s what our customers want us to do. And if we are to make a real difference, everyone involved in the food supply chain – from farmers to customers – has a role to play, too.'
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