Agriculture/ What's Wrong with Supermarkets?
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What's Wrong
with Supermarkets? 1 l 2 l 3 l 4 l 5 l pdf l leaflet pdf |
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Contents
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'Mummy, mummy, can we buy
the Barbie spaghetti shapes?' - Beside the
health scares associated with factory farming and food handling,
supermarkets promote unhealthy food, which can lead to diet
related diseases such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), diet
related cancers (breast, colon etc), osteoporosis, obesity,
diabetes, dental problems and vitamin and iron deficiencies. Obesity is only now
being recognised as a food-related disease of epidemic proportions in
the UK. Between 'cause-related marketing' and 'pester power', instead of giving our children the best food available, we are giving them the most unhealthy. Such foods often consist of highly processed pre-fried, re-formed bits of animal protein or carbohydrates heavily loaded with saturated fat, sugar and salt. Strong flavours easily appeal to a child's uneducated palate. On the other hand, there is strong evidence for a protective effect of fruit and vegetables against chronic diseases such as CVD and cancers.87 Coronary
heart disease (CHD), which makes up half of all cardiovascular
disease, costs the taxpayer around £10 billion a year.
Obesity costs the tax payer £2.5 billion a year.88
National data from 1971-1991 suggest that it is increasingly
the poorest in society who suffer from CHD.89 A recent survey by the Food Commission, illustrated that a shopping basket of 'healthier options' was a staggering 51% more expensive than a basket of standard processed foods. They also found that healthy options were not available in many discount stores, especially a good range of fresh fruit, vegetables and staple foods which need preparation such as flour and dry pasta.90 Next time you are in a supermarket you may like to ask why it is that fresh healthy produce is more expensive than processed food on their shelves. A new trend is to promote the healthy aspect of food products, advertising the added vitamin and mineral content in processed food. It is not surprising that vitamins have to be added to products as intensive agriculture and processing have led to a massive decrease in the nutrient levels in foods.91 So exactly what's in processed foods? Take 'Sunny Delight', the Procter and Gamble drink often mistaken for fruit juice. It consists of water, high fructose corn syrup (major ingredient in synthetic fizzy drinks) and 2% or less of each of the following: Concentrated orange juice, concentrated tangerine juice, concentrated lime juice, concentrated grapefruit juice, citric acid ascorbic acid (vitamin C), beta-carotene, thiamin hydrochloride (vitamin B1), natural flavours (catch-all term for synthetic flavourings that do not have to be listed on the label), food starch-modified sodium citrate, cottonseed oil, propylene glycol alginate, xanthan gum, guar gum, sodium hexametaphosphate, potassium sorbate (to protect flavor), yellow #5, yellow #6. With this knowledge, its tempting to just eat a nice juicy organic orange or home-grown apple instead. Its probably cheaper and certainly better for you! Choice? Convenience? And value? Supermarkets
are not fair competition; in fact they are exploiting you and me. They
are also preventing the development of a vibrant and exciting local
food economy. Just think:
supermarkets could become real market centres again owned by their
local communities and producers, where farmers from the local region
would sell their seasonal produce, and local producers would bring
their wares. All products from further afield would be fairly traded
and imported by small companies. There does not need to be exploitation
in the food system.. And for dessert…what you can do about it? There are alternatives to supermarkets that are community focused, environmentally sustainable and gathering momentum. What they need is your support. Individual /local action:
Policy recommendations: After allowing supermarkets to come up with voluntary codes, it is clear that these do not work. Well intentioned projects such as 'Race to the Top' or the Ethical Trading Initative, which work with the supermarkets, have led to superficial changes, but are often undermined by the supermarkets themselves. We need strong government legislation to
curb the
power of supermarkets, to prevent the exploitation of suppliers and the
destruction of small retailers and the attendant social and
environmental costs. A
major rethink of Competition law in relation to supermarkets is
urgently needed both
in the UK and European Union. The question we need to ask is 'what are the real
effects of having food retailing concentrated in the hands of so few
companies?'. We need to
investigate more thoroughly how monopolies and oligopolies affect
suppliers as well as consumers and also look at local monopolies. We
could follow the example of other European countries in curbing
persistent below-cost selling. It
makes sense to relocalise food production and retailing. This would
include
building covered food markets,
through We should also limit supermaket developments through a
mandatory economic impact assessment to be undertaken before a
supermarket is granted planning permission. There could be a cap on
retailer floor space. Supermarkets could be taxed for the environmental pollution they cause, with taxation on non-recyclable packaging, excessive transportation and car-parking spaces. We should support UK farmers with high environmental and animal welfare standards against unfair trade rules, and call for agriculture to be taken out of the WTO and an end to export dumping. See www.viacampesina.org and www.iatp.org for more information. Campaign
against the GATS agreement of the WTO which could ease supermarkets in
their quests to open up more markets overseas against the wishes and
best interests of local populations. Watch out
for other good policy ideas as we are all still trying to work
this out. For example, Wye Cycle's proposal for legislation
stating that no individual business may be responsible for
more than 1% of UK food retailing. See www.wyecycle.org
For more information on supermarkets and industrial food production:
Further Reading
Useful Websites The Guardian has a substantial section on the Farming Crisis, including brilliant investigative pieces by Consumer Affairs editor, Felicity Lawrence and food writer, Joanna Blythman. www.guardian.co.uk Food Industry websites such as www.grocertoday.com, www.just-food.com , www.kamcity.com George Monbiot's website www.monbiot.com has a substantial section on supermarkets and farming. Strip lights, endless queues of strangers and shelves of packets, fake smiles from bored checkout assistants - Isn't there a better way to get our food? Supermarkets wield immense power over the way we grow, buy and eat our food. They are shaping our environment, our health and the way we interact socially. These changes have gone unchallenged because consumers have been sucked into superstore lifestyles, persuaded that the opportunity to select from six different brands of cut-price oven chips at three in the morning represents choice and value. But the tide may be turning. Unease at the true cost of supermarket food is spreading among consumers, who are beginning to join forces with the farmers and workers who have always know that supermarket 'choice' is a bad deal. This booklet aims to help campaigners get to grips with the reality of supermarket domination and argues why we must start looking for alternatives. Hard copies and more information are available from:
Corporate Watch
16b
Cherwell Street, Oxford, OX4 1BG, England. Tel: +44 (0)1865 791391.
Email: mail@corporatewatch.org.uk
1
www.guardian.co.uk/graphic/0,5812,1050478,00.html; How Green is
your Supermarket? (see further reading). Figures include recent
acquisitions in convenience sector March 2004, although not the full
figures for Morrisons, as around 70 Safeway stores will need to be sold
off as part of the acquisition deal agreed by the Competition
Commission. 2
Keynote Report on Supermarket s and Superstores January 2003 3
Grocery Retailing 2003: The Market Report. IGD 4
Grocery Retailing 2002: The Market Report. IGD September 2002. 5
The Money Programme. Store WEars. Supermarket Showdown. Wednesday 26th
February 2003. 19.30.BBC2 6
Opinion: 'How should porcupines try to mate' in The Grocer 15th Feb
2003. 7
M+M Planet REtail (2001) '30 Retailers now account for 10% of global
retail sales.' 8
Ibid. 9
IGD Global Retailing Index. See IGD website 10Fortune
Magazine: Global 500 figures for 2002/2003 11
'The Retail Giants: Global Expansion and Local Concerns' by Petra
Kjell. In 'Corporate Breakdown' Edition 5. February 2003 12
BBC2 The Money Programme. 'Store Wars: Supermarket Showdown'. 2003 13
Verdict Research report on Non-Food Grocers (2001). www.kamcity.com/Library/articles 14
'Tesco shocked at losing Levi case' Reuters 20/11/01 15
'Tesco to offer divorce finalising and will writing services in store'
21/1/02 www.just-food.com 16 'Supermarkets take cut of Fairtrade cash for poor farmers'. Robert winnett. Sunday Times 29/6/03 17
'Tesco well ahead of the online retailing pack'. www.grocertoday.com
1/3/04 18
'A man walks into a Supermarket...' Asda press release. 21st June 2001. 19 The Big Issue 10 - 16th December 2001 20 'Supermarkets are harnessing PR as they battle to become the definitive champions of the consumer'. Robert Gray Marketing Online http://www.marketing.haynet.com/features/superpr/superpr.htm 21 Famous "market stall" slogan of Jack Cohen, founder of Tesco. 22 UK: Cheaper food No.1' 2/10/01 http://www.kamcity.com/namnews/asp/ newsarticle.asp?newsid=6737 23 Qhoted in 'Summary Of Supermarkets: A report on the supply of groceries from multiple stores in the United Kingdom. Published by the Competition Commission. DTI, UK'. 24 Anonymous source at the Farmers World Network meeting 24th November 2001. 25 Accurate on 28th February 2001. From author's own research in Tesco and the bi-weekly farm-gate price guide produced by the Small and Family Farms Alliance. 26
DEFRA Quick Agricultural Statistics
statistics.gov.uk/esg/quick/agri.asp viewed March 2004. 27
Extent of farm crisis revealed' Patrick Wintour. The Guardian 11/4/04 28
Robert Harris 'Incomes slowly recovering' Farmers Weekly 30/1/03 29
Jules Pretty 2001 ' Some Benefits and Drawbacks of Local Food Systems'.
www.ruralfutures.org 30 'Don't Blame the Supermarkets' by Neil Davison, Financial Times http://www.ft.com/fteuro/qbe7a.htm 31 ibid. 32 Policy Commission on Food and Farming industry stakeholder meeting 23/10/01 33 'Corporate Pigs and Other Tales of Agribusiness' Multinational Monitor. July/Aug 2000 Vol 21. Nos. 7&8. 34 Where reference not made, from 'Fast Food: Some facts and figures to make you lose your appetite' Clare Dwyer Hogg. The Independent (London) September 5, 2001. 35 'That's the Horror of Haskins' by George Monbiot. The Spectator. 1st September 2001. 36 Pesticide Action Network UK Briefing: Pesticides in Water. www.pan-uk.org 37 'Paying the price for cheaper food' The Observer, 25th February 2001. 38
The Grocer's seminar: What Price Safeway? Reported in The Grocer 15th
February 2003 39 See Corporate Watch profiles on Agrochemicals companies: Bayer, Monsanto and Dupont. 40
Pesticides in Supermarket Food (March 2004) www.foe.co.uk/resource/
briefing_supermarket_food.pdf 41
Ghost Town Britain & Ghost Town Britain II . Andrew Simms et al.
New Economics Foundation. 2002/2003 42
Grocery Retailing 2002: The Market report. IGD 43
Figures quoted by Caroline Lucas MEP at 'Good Food on the Public Plate'
cojnference. Oxford Brookes University 24 March 2004 44 Keynote report Supermarkets & Superstores 2001 45 Porter, Sam, and Raistrick, Paul: The Impact of Out-of-Centre Food Superstores on Local Retail Employment, The National Retail Planning Forum, c/o Corporate Analysis, Boots Company Plc., Nottingham. 46 Plugging the Leaks: A briefing (2001) by the Centre for Participation. NEF: London. Downloadable from www.neweconomics.org 47 See www.just-food.com and 'Battle in Store?' pg. 5 48 Hillman, M 'Changing patterns of shopping drawn from National Travel Surveys 1975-91' . Policy Studies Institute 1994. Quoted in 'Off Our Trolleys'. 49
Ghost Town Britain II (2003) 50 For every litre of aviation fuel burnt, 2.5 kg of CO2 are released into the atmosphere. Burning a litre of diesel fuel releases 2.7 kg of CO2. 51
www.defra.gov.uk/esg/Excel/selfsuff.xls 53 ibid. 54 'From Farm to Plate'. The Guardian 28th February 2001. 55 'Sins of the Superstores Visited on Us' George Monbiot. The Guardian 1st March 2001. 56
NOP Omnibus carried out the poll between the 8th and 10th November, see
Friends of the Earth press release 18/11/02 'New poll shows that
public back farmers vs farmers'. 57
Friends of the Earth media breifing 'British Apples for Sale'. Nov 2002. 58 'Sainsbury loses out to Tesco in Air Miles loyalty card deal' 11/1/ 02 just-food.com 59 'From Farm to Plate' 60 'From Market to Hypermarket' in The Ecologist Vol.24 No.4. July/August 1994. 61
Professor Tim Lang. Centre for Food Policy. Thames Valley University
quoted from Gangmasters documentary (see below). 62 'Gangmasters' Panorama BBC1 Transmitted 19/6/00 Transcript on http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/audio_video/programmes/.../ transcript_19_06_00.tx 63 'Unions make In-roads into No-Go areas' Labour Research Department press release 1/9/99 64
See 'Race to the Top' research on Labour Rights in the UK www.rttt.org
Module 3 65
'The Big Staff Checkout' 20/9/03 www.grocertoday.com 67 Keynote Report Supermarkets and Superstores 2001 68 See Wal-Mart Watch website www.walmartwatch.com/info/ 69 Oxfam UK 'Trading Away our Rights: Women working in global supply chains' (Feb 2004); 'Praise Uncle Sam and pass the 18p an Hour' by Greg Palast. The Observer. 20/6/99. 70 Personal communication with GMB researcher Ida Clemo 200171 'Agriculture in Crisis: Why Britain's farmers are making a loss on nearly everything they grow.' The Independent 28th August 1999. 72 Captive State p.184 73 'A Summary of Supermarkets: A Report on the Supply of Groceries from Multiple Stores in the United Kingdom'. DTI, UK. 74
See 'Policy Recommendation' section and look out in the media for the
Breaking the Armlock Coaltion. 75 'Supermarkets abuse power' by Paul Farrelly and Oliver Morgan. The Observer 1/10/01. 76 'Black arts flourishing amongst the black-eyed beans' by Neasa MacErlean. The Observer. Cash section. 3/3/02 77 'Tesco price drive under new attack' by Sarah Ryle, The Observer 9/10/01. 78 'Asda fined £9,000 after judge rules that it mislead customers over low prices', 21 Sep 2001 just-food.com 79 'Tesco under fire for price cut initiative, is it a 'scam' 18/2/02. www.just-food.com 80 Captive State pp.177-178. See Further Reading section. 81 Off our Trolley? Pg 27. See Further Reading section. 82 Food Suppliers create Global Marketplace BBC online March 20 2000. 83 Whistleblower alleges price fixing at Tesco and Sainsbury. 18/2/02 just-food.com 84 'Shoppers loosing faith in Supermarkets' by Jo Willey, PA News 9/9/01. 85 Food Crimes: A Consumer Perspective on the Ethics of Modern Food Production. CWS Ltd. www.co-op.co.uk. 86 'School voucher schemes under fire' 6 December, 2001 http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/education/ newsid_1694000/1694388.stm 87 For more information see 'Why Health is Key to Food and Farming'. See Further Reading Section. 88 Ibid. 89 Ibid. 90 'Healthier diets cost more than ever!' Food Magazine 55. Oct/Dec 2001 91 'Why Fruit and Veg were better for us 50 years ago' Daily Mail, March 5, 2001. http://www.whale.to/w/veg.html 92 See Policy Commission on Food and Farming. www.cabinet-officde.gov.uk/farming
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