Farmers urge supermarkets to buy British goods

Thu, 28 Feb 2013
 
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Farming bosses are calling for supermarkets to purchase British products and stop scouring the world for cheaper goods.

In the wake of the horsemeat scandal, president of the National Farmers' Union (NFU) Peter Kendall claimed at a conference held by the body big food and drink giants need to source meat that is traceable to UK farmers.

He also stated supermarkets are pressuring processors to bring down prices and this is damaging trade, adding: "[Processors] should have told the retailers to get stuffed, that you can't do eight burgers for a pound."

The farming chief said if there is one message that has emerged from the horsemeat scandal, it is that consumers wish to know their food is coming from "as close as home as possible".

Indeed, a poll carried out for the NFU found 43 per cent of people surveyed are more likely to buy food from supermarkets that can be linked back to UK farms.

The scandal kicked off in January, when it was announced traces of horse DNA had been discovered in frozen beefburgers stocked by supermarkets such as Iceland, Lidl and Tesco.

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