Some UK supermarkets are greening up their act and doing more to help customers shop green but others are lagging well behind according to new mystery shopping exercise by Consumer Focus.
It found that the gap between the best and worst performing supermarkets has got wider since the first survey in 2006. Sainsbury’s and M&S made the biggest leap by achieving the first ever overall ‘A’ (excellent) score. They were followed by Waitrose, which retained a ‘B’ grade. Other supermarkets such as Morrisons showed improvement over the course of the surveys; Tesco showed no progress since 2007 and Asda moved down the ratings.
The survey also found some good green practices among the high street chains. The discounters Aldi and Lidl, surveyed for the first time, were the only two supermarkets to have closed doors on all freezers, thereby helping to conserve energy. The co-op was found to be selling the highest proportion of fairly traded products among its own brand products than any of its rivals.
The UK’s top nine supermarket chains were ranked on sustainability measures such as their offerings of UK in-season fruit and vegetables, organics, higher welfare meat and eggs and sustainably sourced fish. The survey looked not just at availability in the store but also how clearly these products were displayed and promoted to consumers in-store. The supermarkets were also rated on how much they encourage recycling.
Lucy Yates, sustainability expert at Consumer Focus, said: ‘We challenge all supermarkets to follow in the footsteps of their better rivals and help their customers – whatever their budget, to shop green. This means, helping consumers, for example, spot and buy UK seasonal produce such as spinach and courgettes through money off promotions or recipe ideas.
‘Shopping green should not be hard. Our survey shows that when a grocer has the will to respond to consumer pressure on green issues, this works through to the shop floor. Saying you have a sustainable fish sourcing policy is not enough – consumers must be able to find sustainable fish on the shelves’.
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Notes to Editors
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Consumer Focus commissioned leading independent marketing research agency, GfK NOP Ltd, to conduct in store, helpline and website research during the period of July 2009. Full report ‘Green to the core’
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Assessments were carried out on nine of the key food retailers in the UK: Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrison’s, Waitrose, Lidl, co-op, M&S and Aldi. The discount retailers Aldi and Lidl were included for the first time because of their recent growth in market share
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Mystery shoppers assessed supermarkets against key green indicators, such as availability of seasonal UK fruit and vegetables, organics, fairly traded products, free range eggs and sustainable fish. Supermarkets were also rated on how much they are doing to cut down waste, stock products with recycled content and encourage people to re-use carrier bags
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Grocery market shares as at 4 October 2009 according to the TNS Worldpanel report, excluding M&S. They include consumer spend in Great Britain through main store tills and exclude petrol and in-store concessions. Total till roll was £27,913.510,000
Tesco: 30.9%
Asda: 17.2 %
Sainsbury’s : 15.7%
Morrison’s: 11.5%
Co-operative: 5.4%
Waitrose: 4.0%
Aldi: 3.0%
Lidl: 2.4%
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Continue to make efficiency savings by putting doors on all freezer units and using less harmful gases in freezer units during regular replacement programmes
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Find out if consumers have any objections to there being doors on chillers
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Find suppliers that can ensure a secure supply of UK-seasonal produce
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Promote seasonal produce in stores and online by, for example, developing tie-ins with recipe cards and magazines
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Adopt a promotions policy that prioritises and incentivises purchases of environmentally friendly foods, especially unprocessed foods and those that are mainly plant-based
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Provide consumers with incentives to reduce and re-use carrier bags and introduce the bags-for-life schemes
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Make maximum use of recycled and sustainably sourced certified packaging materials such as FSC certified materials, and label them accordingly to inform consumers
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Tell consumers about the need to reduce, re-use and recycle. Include the new standardised on-pack recycling label on all products
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Provide a wide range of well signposted recycling facilities inside the store, as well as outside, where possible
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Provide consumers with incentives to reduce and re-use carrier bags and introduce the bags-for-life schemes
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Make maximum use of recycled and sustainably sourced certified packaging materials such as FSC certified materials, and label them accordingly to inform consumers
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Tell consumers about the need to reduce, re-use and recycle. Include the new standardised on-pack recycling label on all products
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Provide a wide range of well signposted recycling facilities inside the store, as well as outside, where possible
Sustainable fishing
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Set specific and stretching targets for sustainable sourcing and help suppliers meet strict sustainable fisheries criteria
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Extend ranges of Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified products
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Tell consumers about sustainable sourcing policies
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Only sell fish included on the MCS fish-to-eat list, and take non-sustainable fish off the shelves. Help consumers to choose and appreciate a wider variety of sustainable fish species through product innovation and promotional activity
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Set targets for increasing the range of organic and other low-pesticide food options
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Set targets for increasing the range of fairly traded and higher welfare products
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Communicate sustainability issues to consumers effectively, not just in stores but also on helplines and websites by, for example, have website links to relevant issues for online grocery shoppers
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Communicate effectively to consumers about the ‘smart’ use of products so they are using products in ways that minimises energy and water use in the home and reduces waste
