Food – Supermarket’s source survey of British Beef and Lamb

Morrisons tops British lamb and beef sourcing survey

9 December 2013 | By Alistair Driver

MORRISONS continues to lead the way in sourcing British red meat with Asda emerging as the worst performer

among 10 major retailers surveyed, according to new figures released by EBLEX.

The data from the red meat levy board’s Beefwatch and Lambwatch quarterly surveys show the percentage of

British beef and lamb sourced by UK retailers is on the up.

Around 83 per cent of beef on supermarket shelves in November was British, with 88 per cent of lamb sourced

domestically. Both of these figures are up on the surveys of a year ago and the previous one this August, with

lamb at one of the highest levels seen in recent years.

Morrisons again came out top, compared with its three main rivals, with all its beef and lamb from England,

Scotland or Wales. The Bradford-based retailer has consistently achieved a 100 per cent rating in both categories

in previous surveys.

Sainsbury’s also fared well, scoring 87 per cent on beef and 97 per cent on lamb, up in both cases on 12 months ago.

Tesco scored 82 per cent on beef, down slightly on recent surveys, and 75 per cent on lamb, a big increase of 37

Asda produced the most disappointing figures in both categories from the 10 retailers surveyed – just 59 per cent

British beef, albeit an improvement on recent surveys, and 73 per cent British lamb.

Of the rest, Aldi, Lidl and Waitrose also scored 100 per cent in both categories, while M&S, Budgens and Co-op all

scored 100 per cent for beef and in excess of 85 per cent for cent for lamb.

NFU deputy president Meurig Raymond said: “It’s clear that retailers are now starting to recognise the importance

of promoting farm assured Red Tractor British beef and lamb which we know more consumers want to buy.

“These latest figures show improvements across the board although some supermarkets are still doing better

than others.

“I’m pleased to see Tesco improving its commitment to British lamb although it’s disappointing that the levels of

British beef on the shelves have fallen in the past few months. The fact that Morrisons is consistently stocking

both 100 per cent beef and lamb is a shining example that I hope other retailers will follow.

“While there have been improvements, it’s clear that more needs to be done and the NFU remains committed to

working with all retailers to improve their commitment to sourcing British.”

EBLEX’s Beefwatch and Lambwatch surveys involves visits to 20 large stores and 10 small stores in England for

each of the 10 main multiple retailers. A survey is carried out on country of origin for beef and lamb packs based

purely on facings, not volume or sales.