Download the full Ethical Hijack report (1.2Mb PDF)
Press release: “Sustain challenges Heinz to drop phoney ‘farmers’ market’ claims
Consumers are more and more interested in where their food comes from and how it is grown. They want to do their bit to help protect the environment, help farmers get a better deal, and improve animal welfare – and they need the right information to help them to do so.
In a world full of conflicting messages and confusing environmental claims, certain descriptions and concepts help consumers navigate their way to more ethical choices. Eating seasonal food, for example, can help us to reconnect with the seasons and reduce greenhouse gas emissions – the food can be grown in natural conditions, and does not need to be stored or refrigerated for long, or transported very far. Eating local food can help us to use our purchasing power to give farmers a decent income and to reduce how far food has traveled. Meanwhile, the booming popularity of farmers’ markets demonstrates that consumers are increasingly interested in supporting local farmers, eating a more seasonal diet and making a personal connection with the people who grow their food.
The word ‘seasonal’ should help consumers to identify fresh food grown in the right season in natural conditions, without excessive use of energy, and without food having to be transported over great distances. Eating seasonal food is one of the best ways we can cut down on the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. But our supermarket research found seasonal being used to describe airfreighted out-of-season fruit, spinach from two continents, vegetables grown in energy-intensive glasshouses, cake, chocolate, and even washing powder! If, like us, you think this is wrong, sign our petition (below).
The mainstream food industry is keenly aware that terms such as “local”, “seasonal” and “farmers’ market” are attractive to consumers. Such terms have come to symbolise many of the qualities of a more ethical and sustainable food system, and many food producers do make genuine efforts to improve the environmental and ethical credentials of their products. Many such producers are working at a small scale and investing a great deal of time and effort – often supported by public money – in developing a market for more sustainable food.
Their efforts are being hijacked. Big food companies and supermarkets have begun to abuse these valuable words and concepts by applying them to products and practices that Sustain believes do not deserve such ethical or environmental credentials. Our new report ‘Ethical Hijack’ highlights some of these disturbing practices, and to set out a case for why terms such as “local”, “seasonal” and “farmers’ market” should be defended from abuse by the mainstream food industry.
Sustain has complained to the Advertising Standards Authority about ads for Heinz “Farmers’ Market” soups. In our opinion, these products do not contain ingredients grown by farmers local to the point of sale, and that only food sold direct to the public by farmers should be described with such a term. If you agree with us, sign our petition (below), and defend such descriptions from future misappropriation.
We stand in danger of such terms and concepts losing their value, and consumers losing their trust in ethical and environmental messages associated with food. This is likely to greatly reduce our ability to make better choices, undermining efforts to combat climate change and other environmental damage, and to support better incomes for farmers – especially those who have taken the trouble to adopt more ethical and environmental practices.
Download the full Ethical Hijack report (1.2Mb PDF)
Sustain calls for change
Sustain is lobbying the UK government’s Food Standards Agency, asking them to adopt recognised standards for terms such as “local” and “seasonal” food and the term “farmers’ market”. If they do so, this would:
- ensure that food manufacturers, producers, supermarkets and caterers do not use these descriptions inappropriately
- help enforcement authorities, such a local authority trading standards officers and the Advertising Standards Authority, to challenge inappropriate uses
- benefit consumers, who will be able to trust these terms when they see them, and know that they are buying food that can help protect the environment
- ensure that valuable descriptions for identifying more sustainable food are not eroded or even lost, to the detriment of everyone
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