Sir
The recent Bernard Matthews bird flu outbreak has far-reaching consequences for the British food industry but, while the impact on consumer confidence in food safety has been widely discussed, little has been said about the long-term impact on the environment.
One of the most striking aspects of the crisis was the amount of poultry being moved between Norfolk and Hungary. In recent years, we have seen many UK businesses relocate their production to Poland, Hungary and other eastern European countries. One of the often ignored impacts of this is that food previously produced in the UK now has to be imported by road, resulting in millions of additional vehicle miles and carbon emissions.
Consumers accept that climate change is a real issue. In response, they are changing their behaviour; 5M more people are now recycling.
Consumers recognise there is a need for them to do more personally to reduce the impact of climate change but that, paradoxically, their ability to make major change to a global problem is limited. As a result, they are looking to brand owners and retailers to provide products that are less damaging to the environment, such as vehicles with lower emissions, packaging that can be recycled, and food that's not driven halfway across Europe. This is set to have a major impact on businesses that have relocated production facilities overseas.
Marks & Spencer and Tesco announced that they were going carbon neutral and many other companies have made similar pledges. Tesco said it would develop a carbon footprint labelling measure for all products sold in store and cut the cost of many energy-efficient goods. The new "green" labels would allow customers to compare and shop for items that required less energy to produce.
Food brands have to respond as both retailers and consumers will start choosing low carbon products. A sensible response is a return to production plants serving local, ie national, markets. This will not only be beneficial in terms of carbon emissions, but may also help reduce the incidence of cross-border food safety issues.
Chris Marshall
Non-executive chairman
Tangerine Confectionery