Fair Trade for UK food producers – a lost cause?

.

In 2006, Michael Hart [Small and Family Farmers’ Alliance] – following negotiations with the Soil Association & the Fairtrade Foundation – emailed:

“While I continue to like the idea of fair trade for UK farmers (in fact for all farmers). I suspect that, in order to work, it would have to be done by the UK farming organisations working together . . . 

In 2007-2008 there was active campaigning for a fair deal for food producers see details here:

• The Farmers’ Union of Wales,
• Farm,
• National Federation of Women’s Institutes,
• Church of Scotland,
• NFU,
• Farmers Guardian,
• Country Living magazine,
• The Church of England’s Ethical Investment Advisory Group,
• The National Pig Association,
• NFU Scotland,
• The Scottish Fair Trade Forum,
• Farmers for Action,
• And MPs Lindsay Hoyle, Roger William, Andrew George, Elfyn Llwyd, AWP Mick Bates

Letters to the NFU’s farming organisations, each representing producers in different sectors and to individual food producers, hoping for a wider input got no such result.

Michael Hart has been proved right and the sad conclusion of the editor of this website is that Fair Trade for UK food producers is indeed a lost cause, despite his campaigning and the stalwart efforts of the late Andrew Hemming, David Handley Kathleen Calvert and William Taylor.

–

Fair Deal Award presented to MP Andrew George at the Annual Conference of the Family Farmers’ Association

 

A Fair Deal award was presented to Andrew George MP during the FFA’s annual October conference organised by livestock farmer Pippa Woods.

On the Westminster committee room Cornish farmer, Fair Deal Council member and video-maker Michael Hart, presented the granite based award made by Sculpture Designer, a co-operative of lead crystal craftsmen formed when Tyrone Crystal went out of business. Click on picture to get a clearer image.

For years Mr George has been the national chairman of the Grocery Market Action Group (GMAG) which successfully led the campaign to create a watchdog to protect smaller farmers and growers from the unethical practices of supermarket buyers. He brought GMAG together several years ago and it includes representatives from the National Farmers’ Union, the British Independent Fruit Growers Association, Friends of the Earth, ActionAid, Traidcraft, the Association of Convenience Stores, the British Brands Group and many others.

 

Addressing the House on this subject in 2008

Mr George said, “It’s a great honour to accept this award, but I do so on behalf of many other people who have worked so hard to advance the campaign to make sure that farmers and growers are treated fairly by powerful supermarket buyers.”

Mr George also urged the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon David Cameron MP, to ensure that there was no delay in the Bill’s implementation during Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday.

Three days ago it was reported that the Bill to set up a Groceries Code Adjudicator with the role of enforcing the Groceries Code and encouraging compliance with it,  had its second reading debate on 19 November 2012 and that, after the Public Bill Committee has scrutinised it line by line, its report to the House is expected by 18 December 2012.

 

To read more about Fair Deal Awards go to the Localise West Midlands website.

 

To read the Bill, download pdf from link on http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2012-13/groceriescodeadjudicator.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

Calls for watchdog to fine UK supermarkets

The Fresh Produce Journal reports that activists from the Cross-cutting Group set up by MP Andrew George Fair Deal Food awardee, staged a demonstration at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills last Wednesday highlighting the need for the government to ensure that its new supermarket watchdog, the Groceries Code Adjudicator, has the power to fine supermarkets for unfair buying practices that negatively impact the working conditions of UK farmers.

Campaigners claimed that retail chains like Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons which, combined, control over 75% of the UK grocery market – have too much power in dictating terms and conditions to their suppliers, which results in either lower wages and poorer conditions for workers or reduced environmental standards.

Read more here: http://www.freshinfo.com/index.php?ei=h&fiemt=10012012102572463110&s=n&ss=nd&sid=56372

 

Celebrating MP Andrew George’s work for British food producers

The Future of the CAP – Open Meeting

.

At the Family Farmers’ Association meeting in Westminster,on the afternoon of October 17^th, Andrew George will be presented with a Fair Deal Award by Cornish farmer Michael Hart, Fair Deal Council member.

.

To read more about Andrew’s work, click here.

.

.For details, please download the conference flyer or contact Pippa Woods:

Family Farmers’ Association
Osborne Newton
Aveton Gifford
Kingsbridge
South Devon
TQ7 4PE

Phone 01548 852794

Email info@familyfarmersassociation.org.uk

.

MEP Phillip Bennion: Supermarkets must pay a fair price for milk

.

Reproduced from ‘Our Solihull’ site:

.

In a press release received today, energetic and knowledgeable West Midlands Euro MP, Phillip Bennion, says that consumers should follow farmers’ warnings and boycott supermarkets who fail to pay a fair price for local milk. He spoke to local farmers about the crisis yesterday and has been discussing these issues at European level.

British farmers already on the edge of bankruptcy erupted in protests after supermarkets refused to pay more for milk, causing dairies to try and cut the price they paid to farmers. Some supermarkets, notably Morrisons and Co-op, have now raised their wholesale prices paid for milk.

Dr Bennion, an arable farmer from Haunton near Tamworth with a doctorate in agronomy, says: “I can understand the desperation and anger felt by dairy farmers who now have to sell milk for less than the price of bottled water.

.

Ofcom-style supermarket regulator needed with more pro-active regulatory action – the voluntary approach is not enough

.

“The behaviour by some supermarkets screwing down the milk price paid to farmers to impossible levels is outrageous. This is yet more evidence of the need for an effective supermarket regulator, as advocated by the Liberal Democrats for years, especially the Cornish MP Andrew George.

“We now see some supermarkets waking up as people power hits them where it hurts. The combination of farmer protests and consumers switching to the supermarkets that pay a fair price shows what can be achieved by modern communications.”

He added that the recent protests also highlight the need for the government to introduce an Ofcom-style supermarket regulator using more pro-active regulatory action – the voluntary approach is not enough.

Dr Bennion added that dairy farmers in particular needed Cost of Production contracts which allow prices paid to vary:

.

“Supermarkets need continuity of supply and therefore long term contracts. However, dairy farmers’ costs such as grain are highly volatile. It is no-one’s interest for dairies and supermarkets to drive their suppliers into the ground when input costs are high.”

.

STOP PRESS

FFA website: “ASDA miraculously finds another 2ppl to add to its farmgate price for milk.  Although we welcome this further increase which takes their litre price to farmers to 29.5ppl, we still require them to commit that this money will be linked into a cost of production formula so that they can never again pull the price back.”

*

Celebrating MP Andrew George’s 12 year quest: a Fair Deal for British food producers

.

At the Family Farmers’ Association meeting in Westminster, on the afternoon of October 17^th, Andrew George will be presented with a Fair Deal Award by Cornish farmer Michael Hart, Fair Deal Council member.

.

His track record

.

In his own words during a parliamentary debate on the grocery sector which he secured in December 2008:

 

.

“In July 2006, I was privileged to be able to call together a wide range of non-governmental organisations and interest groups including Friends of the Earth, the Association of Convenience Stores, the British Brands Group, the British Independent Fruit Growers Association, ActionAid, Traidcraft, the National Farmers Union of England and Wales, the National Farmers Union of Scotland, Banana Link and Breaking the Armlock in what we called a cross-cutting group, because it was covering a number of subjects that were relevant to the Competition Commission inquiry.

“We submitted a proposal, which I had supported for a number of years, for not so much an independent food trade regulator as an adjudicator. On 13 March this year, following the provisional findings of the Competition Commission’s inquiry, I went to give further evidence to the commission along with Michael Hutchings, a lawyer supporting the cross-cutting group, and Robin Tapper, representing the NFU. I was pleased that on 30 April 2008, the commission’s final report on the United Kingdom grocery market included proposals for the strengthening of what was then known as the supermarket code of practice to become a reinforceable grocery sector code of practice and for the establishment of a supermarket ombudsman.”

He has corresponded with and met several Fair Deal Food proponents, hosting Pippa Woods’ Family Farmers Association Westminster meetings. In 2008 he wrote:

“Further to your letter of 3″^d December I would of course be happy for you to make public my support for a fair deal for UK food producers”, enclosing copies of statements he had made in respect of the Competition Commission’s Inquiry into the grocery trade.

.

Only now is the legislation before the House, though as long ago as 2000 the Competition Commission’s Inquiry had published its findings: 

.

In summary, big retailers consistently:

• delay payments to suppliers – a practice that can push small companies out of business, and people out of work;
• reduce the agreed price of an order after it’s been delivered;
• require payments from suppliers when supermarket profits are not as big as expected;
• require suppliers to contribute to the cost of opening a new store;
• change orders at the last minute – for example, demanding different packaging and forcing suppliers to pick up the cost. 

.

A report in the Farmers Weekly Online (2011) records that Mr George, chairman of the cross-party Grocery Market Action group, fears stalling by civil servants meant the Bill would be unlikely to be put in place until 2014 – a delay he deemed unacceptable:

“It has been a lot of work to get MPs on side because they were sceptical of over-regulation, but this is a regulation that is essential,” he told Farmers Weekly.

“We are talking about suppliers and farmers being pushed to the margin because of the pressure being put on them by over-powerful supermarkets using bully-boy tactics . . . 

.

“Every week the government fails to act, farmers are finding themselves in more difficulty.” 

.

“I am having discussions with Ed Davey [in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills] to ensure that when the starting gun is fired, the ombudsman can be rolled out immediately and civil servants are geared up to act . . . I am also having discussions with the leader of the House to make sure they are properly raising the issue to find the time to discuss it during the parliamentary session. In my role as a quasi-DEFRA minister, I have also been trying to be ‘coalitionised’ and have meetings with Jim Paice and DEFRA minister Caroline Spelman to help push the issue.

.

“We will be giving it a strong push in the autumn – the pressure is definitely on.”

.

Other interests: he has been in the news this month for several reasons, including his work with Stephen Fry on the Parthenon Marbles and support for improvements to Penzance Harbour. More information on all this can be seen here.

*

MP Andrew George calls for a final push to create a supermarket watchdog and end the bullyboy tactics of supermarket buyers

On Wednesday the chair of the national Grocery Market Action Group (GMAG) MP Andrew George, has today called on the Government to make the final big push to create a supermarket watchdog by including it in the Queen’s Speech, if not before. Mr George said: 

“The call for a supermarket watchdog has cross-party support and there can be no excuses for further delay. Every day that goes by means that more food producers will go out of business due to the bullyboy tactics of supermarket buyers.

“It is time for the Government to confirm that the Groceries Code Adjudicator Bill will be put before Parliament in the next session, if not before. 

If supermarkets have nothing to hide, they have nothing to fear 

“The progress of this campaign has been met with constant opposition from some of the large supermarkets. If they have nothing to hide then they have nothing to fear.”

Mr George has campaigned for the creation of a supermarket watchdog since 2000. Membership of GMAG includes the National Farmers’ Union, the National Farmers’ Union of Scotland, the British Independent Fruit Growers Association, Friends of the Earth, ActionAid, Traidcraft, the Association of Convenience Stores and others. 

Read the article on Andrew George’s website.