Tesco has unveiled a 10-point “Community Plan’ as part of an attempt to boost its image in the face of the Competition Commission’s impending inquiry into the grocery sector.
As predicted by freshinfo on Sunday, Tesco chief executive Terry Leahy told the Work Federation research group that Tesco wants to be a good neighbour and not simply win customers through product choice and low prices.
“… They want to be assured that businesses are responsible, fair and honest,” he said, conceding that the supermarket chain would need to work hard to earn the lifetime loyalty of customers.
The move follows the OFT’s referral of the grocery sector to the Competition Commission this week, which has raised concerns over the power of supermarkets, including the practice of keeping retail ‘land banks’ which stifle competition.
The OFT is said to have received around 1,200 submissions from the industry following its provisional announcement of a referral in March. However, only seven of these are speculated to be from supermarket suppliers; the majority are thought to have come from a Friends of the Earth-run website.
According to news provider Reuters, Tesco announced a £100 million investment in environmental technology earlier this month as part of its new green agenda. It will aim to halve the energy output from its buildings by 2010 through the installation of energy-saving devices such as wind turbines and will improve recycling facilities and make its carrier bags biodegradable.
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