Tesco has joined its competitors by launching a “Best of British” page on its website to help customers support local farmers and producers.
The page contains more than 500 British products, including fruit and vegetables, meat, fish, eggs, and dairy products, as well as recipes such as a Spring potato salad and apple and berry crumble.
The grocer said it was continuing to provide support in the wake of recent inflationary challenges and difficult weather conditions, and continued to act as a “key partner” in tackling longer-term issues such as climate change and nature loss.
Tesco’s chief commercial officer Ashwin Prasad said: “Supporting British farmers, growers and suppliers remains critical to ensuring we have a robust food industry here in the UK, and we count ourselves as proud champions of British agriculture, striving to source produce from the UK wherever possible.
“Our customers share our love for British produce, and we want to do all we can to make it as easy to find as possible, no matter how they shop with us, so we’re thrilled to be launching our Best of British page on our groceries website, bringing together over 500 hundred quality, affordable British products to choose from.”
Tesco follows rivals including Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Aldi and Morrisons by adding the tab to its website following a call for supermarkets to support local farmers.
It follows an open letter written by Conservative MP Dr Luke Evans and signed by 125 cross-party MPs to the chief executives of eight major supermarkets asking for a filter which would direct shoppers to homegrown food to help boost the economy and cut the UK’s carbon footprint.
The letter was signed by representatives from all the main political parties in England and Wales.
It said that the “small change” would give “customers greater autonomy over their food choices” and could boost seasonal eating.
Dr Evans said: “I’m pleased to welcome Tesco to the fray. It’s great to see the UK’s largest supermarket join other major retailers in implementing an online ‘Buy British’ section which will support our farmers and give consumers greater choice.
“This is really welcome news and a step forward in supporting our nation’s food growers and producers by showcasing over 500 homegrown items, with everything from meat and vegetables to dairy products now easier to find on the ‘Best of British’ tab.”