Food & Drink
‘Promises, Promises’
Supermarkets’ meat and dairy still linked to banned deforestation in Brazil.
17 July 2022
UK supermarkets are not on track to meet crucial environmental targets, according to WWF’s What’s in Store for the Planet 2024 report.
The annual report reveals piecemeal progress since last year and clear areas of concern – with supermarkets a long way off meeting the goal of halving the environmental impact of the average UK weekly shop by 2030.
Despite a welcome increase in data voluntarily submitted by the supermarkets, the report – an in-depth review of the UK grocery market’s impact across seven key areas – warns that supermarkets are off track on a number of measures, with some lagging behind in key areas such as climate and deforestation.
The way we produce food, the report says, is ultimately failing not just the environment but consumers and farmers, too.
There is just over a year to go until the first major milestone in the ‘WWF Basket’ initiative, which underpins the report.
This milestone is to ensure that key commodities such as soy, beef, cocoa and palm oil do not cause deforestation or land conversion by the end of 2025.
The data show that retailers are still falling far short of what’s needed.
On average, only 4.5% of soy entering the UK food retail value chain, mainly to provide feed for chickens, pigs, farmed fish and dairy cattle, is verified deforestation and conversion free. The figure for cocoa is just 0.3%.
Emissions from supermarkets’ supply chains are still based on estimates and do not adequately reflect one of the major sources of emissions – those produced on farms. This makes the picture worryingly unclear.
Supermarkets are selling twice the target proportion of livestock protein (meat and eggs).
The levels of food loss and waste within retail and manufacturing has increased overall.
In the report, WWF warns that a repeated failure by governments and businesses to address deforestation and the destruction of wild places is putting the climate, nature and food security at risk.
Globally, food production uses 40% of habitable land and is responsible for a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions.
Yet the devastating effects of the climate and nature crises – from unpredictable weather patterns, droughts and declines in pollinators, to disasters that flood fields and ruin produce – are heavily disrupting production and reducing food security, presenting a major challenge for the sector and leading to shortages and rising prices.
Shockingly, since the WWF Basket launched in 2021, the world has lost over 7.9 million hectares of tree cover – an area almost the size of Austria.
WWF warns supermarkets are ‘way off track’ to meet the ‘critical and urgent’ 2025 target to ensure that the products on their shelves aren’t destroying tropical forests that teem with life and help absorb carbon.
Despite engagement from the supermarkets to tackle deforestation and the loss of wild places – through industry coalitions and calls for robust due diligence legislation to ensure that commodities such as beef, cocoa, palm oil and soy entering the UK are not causing nature loss – progress has stalled.
Dominant international traders have refused to respond to calls for effective origin control on all supplies and the last government failed to deliver promised legislation.
Yet irresponsible palm oil production, for example, has been – and continues to be – a major driver of deforestation of some of the world’s most biodiverse forests.
Palm oil is found in nearly 50% of the packaged products we find in supermarkets – from pizza, doughnuts and chocolate to deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste and lipstick.
Without urgent action, warns the report, the retailers’ 2030 science-based climate targets are highly likely to be missed, putting the future of our food system – and planet – at risk.
‘Consumers should not have to worry about whether their food shop is fuelling the climate crisis or pushing precious wildlife closer to the brink.
‘How we produce food remains one of the biggest threats to our planet. And while it’s positive that UK supermarkets have pledged to source their food responsibly, they must now follow through. Supermarkets depend on nature and a stable climate for the food they sell, and most people want to buy sustainably. Unless supermarkets prioritise this, we will all suffer the consequences.
‘The UK government must now step in and urgently introduce the long-awaited due diligence regulations to prevent further destruction of our forests and natural habitats. Without them, supermarkets will continue to pay lip service while the planet pays the price for their inaction – putting us all at risk.’TANYA STEELE
Chief executive at WWF
The data do reveal some positive steps forward this year, indicating that progress is possible.
Most supermarkets that submitted data have made progress towards near-term Scope 1 (direct) and Scope 2 (indirect) emissions reduction targets, and in setting 1.5°C-aligned Scope 3 (value chain) targets in line with the Science Based Targets Initiative’s (SBTi’s) Forestry, Land-use and Agriculture (FLAG) guidance.
For the first time, four supermarkets have shared some data on wild-caught seafood species adhering to all aspects of the Seafood Jurisdictional Initiative (SJI), while reported figures for certified seafood are at 88%.
Supermarkets that submitted data are, on average, sourcing more than 50% of their UK-sourced produce from land within robust schemes to manage soil health and biodiversity. However, only half of the retailers provided data, so the sector-wide picture is unclear.
10 out of 11 major UK food supermarkets – representing 90% of the grocery market – shared more data this year than ever before. Continuing to improve levels of transparency is vital for informed decision-making, building resilient supply chains and tracking progress toward sustainability goals.
The report highlights that while some retailers are leading the way and making necessary changes in some areas, collective and accelerated action is urgently needed: governments must regulate, commodity traders must reform and supermarkets must help consumers to make healthy sustainable choices.
‘Supermarkets have a crucial to play in the sustainability of our food system and therefore the climate but they are falling short of their climate and nature targets and missing them isn’t just bad for business – it’s a recipe for disaster.
‘If supermarkets fail to act now, the impacts of environmental crises will only worsen, with even more consequences for supply chains, prices, and the ecosystems they rely on. With supply chains already on the brink and customers demanding change, it’s time for supermarkets to lead the charge toward a sustainable future.’
SIR DAVE LEWIS
Chair of trustees at WWF
WWF is calling on the supermarkets to hold firm to their commitments and face the challenges ahead with renewed determination and collaboration, sharing solutions within the sector to support a fair transition to sustainable food production.
While regulation is critical, WWF wants retailers to remain resolute in their commitment by investing in monitoring at farms in high-risk sourcing locations for all commodities associated with deforestation such as soy, beef, palm oil and cocoa.
It wants an end to the sourcing of commodities such as soy, beef, palm oil and cocoa from traders who do not have credible action plans to secure verified deforestation-free produce supplies before end of 2025.
The charity also wants retailers to actively promote alternative protein choices to halve meat sales in line with the proportions set out in WWF’s Livewell diet, helping to curb demand for commodities like beef and soy used in animal feed which come with a risk of deforestation.
Supermarkets’ meat and dairy still linked to banned deforestation in Brazil.
Leading supermarkets join WWF in pledge to make UK weekly food shop ‘greener’ and help tackle climate crisis.
Poll: 87% believe supermarkets should not do business with deforesters.
UK supermarkets linked to 2020’s record-breaking fires in Brazil’s Pantanal wetlands.
Subscribe to our newsletter
Weekly ethical news, offers, comps and a free digital mag (quarterly) – what’s not to love?
