British farmers unhappy as Asda retracts beef promise

Asda has backed out of a commitment it made in October to stock exclusively British beef, angering farmers.

National Beef Association (NBA) chief executive Neil Shand said he was "deeply disappointed" by Asda's choice.

Asda said their policy had changed because of the rise in British beef prices.

"Whilst we continue to work hard to keep prices as low as possible for our customers, these increases are significant", a spokesperson said.

Farmers are struggling with feed, fertilizer and energy costs escalating at rates "never seen before", according to the NBA.

"Our supermarkets need to support domestic producers as much as possible - now more than ever," Mr Shand said.

Morrisons and Co-op both told the BBC they would continue to only sell British beef, despite the rise in prices.

"We're proud to support British beef farmers and Co-op was the first national supermarket to commit to only selling 100% own brand British meat and poultry. We also only use British meat ingredients in our frozen products and sandwiches and ready meals," Co-op said in a statement.

An Aldi spokesman said the grocer had "no plans to change".

Asda said all fresh beef in its premium Extra Special tier would remain 100% British, while all of the rest of its fresh beef would be sourced from farms in the UK and Republic of Ireland.

The country's largest supermarket, Tesco, also sources the fresh beef it sells in the UK from either the UK or the Republic of Ireland.

Asda declined to comment on the decisions of other grocers.

In a statement, the supermarket said: "We know that it is important to our customers that the beef on our shelves has been produced to high welfare standards and is affordable."

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Republic of Ireland beef is currently around 20% less expensive than British, according to the Irish Examiner. Ireland accounted for almost 80% of UK beef imports in 2020, according to Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board.

Beef makes up nearly half of all meat imports to the UK according to the British Meat Processors Association (BMPA).

In response to Asda's shift, Deborah Deymond, a beef farmer who has a herd of 80 cattle in Rattery, said: "Farmers believe in long term commitments and so should supermarkets".

"I was so pleased to hear they had made the pledge in October but think it's disgraceful they're not supporting British farmers more".

"You cannot have a good product for next to nothing prices and supermarkets should value domestic farmers properly," she added.

National Farmers Union (NFU) livestock board chairman Richard Findlay, was also disappointed and said that, given the "significant" changes to trade and agricultural policy, it was "more important than ever" for retailers to "champion" British farmers.

Mr Findley said that any sourcing commitments made by supermarkets need to be honoured.

"Our beef is renowned for its quality and high production standards, and retail support plays a big part in enabling farmers to make further investments in climate and environmentally-friendly food production," he added.

Asda made the initial announcement after it was bought by the Issa brothers, two entrepreneurs from Blackburn who made billion-pound fortunes running petrol stations. It is Britain's third-largest supermarket chain.