Sainsbury’s become biggest supermarket to implement a ‘Buy British’ section for online shoppers in third big success for a campaign supported by Dr Neil Hudson MP.
In August 2023 Dr Neil Hudson MP and 125 other cross-Party Parliamentarians signed an open letter calling on supermarkets to highlight the very best of British produce by implementing a ‘Buy British’ section online.
The letter, spearheaded by Dr Luke Evans MP, stated ‘Our ask is simple, create a tab that collates produce from farmers,’ citing consumer choice, environmental benefits and support for farmers as reasons to make the change.
The ’Best of British’ page on Sainsburys.co.uk spotlights over 450 British-sourced grocery products – including popular produce, meat, dairy and eggs – meaning customers shopping for groceries on Sainsbury’s website can now find and buy homegrown produce even more easily.
Having published a parliamentary report on food security, recently chaired a select committee session on British agriculture in trade deals and lent his expertise to a specialised policy panel; Dr Hudson is a passionate and well-respected voice in the field of food security. Implementing a British section to online retailers will help consumers back British producers, shore up domestic production and safeguard prices against international market volatility.
Since Dr Hudson signed the open letter over 30,000 people have signed a National Farmers’ Union (NFU) petition in support, the Government endorsed the campaign and Morrisons and Aldi have also launched a ‘British’ section for online shoppers.
Dr Neil Hudson MP, said:
“It’s great to see Sainsbury’s have made this site-wide change and put our nation’s farmers first. Sainsbury’s have become the biggest supermarket to launch a ‘Best of British’ section and with 450 items, it’s the biggest yet!
“The reaction to this campaign has been overwhelmingly positive, with food producers across the United Kingdom supporting the call and consumers asking why supermarkets weren’t doing it already.
"This small move from supermarkets will have a huge impact on consumer choice - allowing folk to stand up for our brilliant farmers, bolster our food security, and protect prices from international market volatility."
Dr Luke Evans MP, said:
“This is another huge step forward for my ‘Buy British’ button campaign! With Sainsbury’s launch of a ‘Buy British’ section online they become the latest supermarket to support homegrown produce.
“This gives consumers extra choice, which is good for our environment and helps to support British farmers.
“Sainsbury’s have taken a further step forward by placing signposting to buy homegrown produce on the homepage and in other sections on the website such as those dedicated to dairy, fruit and vegetables.
“Farmers always tell me the best thing we can do to support them is to buy local, homegrown produce and the new ‘Best of British’ section on Sainsbury’s website makes it even easier for shoppers to support our farmers and cut down on unnecessary food miles.
“It’s great to see Sainsbury’s, Aldi and Morrisons all leading the way on the ‘Buy British’ button, I look forward to seeing other supermarkets follow their lead. The dial is shifting on this, I hope the likes of Tesco and Asda will follow soon.”
Simon Roberts, Sainsbury’s Chief Executive Officer, said:
“Many of our customers want to support British suppliers and make more conscious choices when doing their food shop, and our new Buy British webpage helps them to do just that through a curation of over 450 quality, 100% locally sourced products.
“We recognise the pressures that British farmers are facing and the importance of supporting them to maintain a resilient UK food system for the long term. Our relationships with farmers and suppliers are incredibly important to us and we remain committed to sourcing British as much as we can, now and in the future.”
Tom Bradshaw, President of the National Farmers’ Union, said:
“It’s fantastic to see supermarkets getting behind Dr Luke Evans’ campaign and I’m delighted that Sainsbury’s is also backing British farmers by adding a British section online in order to signpost shoppers to home-grown produce.
“Our own independent research shows the public want to buy more British food from retailers and we have been championing this issue for some time. The addition of the British section online by Sainsbury’s will help customers support British farmers.”
Customers will see a varying selection of products on the page which is dependent on the seasonal availability and ranging in their local store.
