Chris Loder, MP for West Dorset, has today written to each of the ‘Big Six’ supermarkets – Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi, and Lidl – demanding that farmers and food producers be paid a fair price. It’s the latest stage in a long-running campaign by the local MP, who is himself the son of tenant beef farmers, to ensure supermarkets pay fairly for produce. Mr Loder said:
“It’s immoral that many farmers and food producers who supply the ‘Big Six’ supermarkets are still turning a negligible profit – sometimes of less than 1p profit for the food they produce when supermarkets declare record profits. This is simply unacceptable. With record turnover and inflation having worked in their favour, it is incumbent upon the supermarkets to do the right thing. I’ve also called for the ‘Big Six’ supermarkets to address the prices of their food and fuel, which remains inconsistently high - even though inflation has halved. In addition, I’ve urged each supermarket to reduce, or even eliminate, its reliance on single-use plastic. I look forward to scrutinising the responses of each and pushing for greater representativeness within the retail sector.”
