It’s got to be good news for growers when supermarkets are facing off in a PR war over who is selling the most British produce.

We see it at the start of every Jersey Royal, asparagus and strawberry season, of course - hastily rushed out press releases proclaiming the first British produce on shelves, even if it is just a single box delivered to a local store near the producing farm. It’s not uncommon either for several retailers to claim “victory” in the race to be first to shelf.

And Tesco was positively triumphant this week in announcing that it had overtaken Sainsbury’s in volume sales of English apples. Yes, it might have only been by a few tonnes and yes, you can argue that Sainsbury’s performance is still the more impressive given the two retailers’ relative market shares.

But Tesco’s statement of intent is clear, and it’s good news for the industry if supermarkets care so much. Now Tesco is moving in the right direction, its attention will turn squarely on Asda, which continues to undertrade on many British lines.

Asda insists its customers do care about buying British, and there is some evidence it is making moves to remedy the situation, but domestic growers still want to see it at least gain a share that reflects its position in the overall grocery market.

If there continues to be vigorous competition for home-grown produce, and provided fair returns are paid, such PR battles can only help the country get closer to the government’s tough domestic production targets.

Topics