The supermarket will fund a scheme to help producers weather the turbulent environmental and economic climate, and become certified regenerative. By David Burrows.
Waitrose is ploughing £1m into support for UK farmers to help them develop nature-friendly and regenerative farming practices.
The new partnership with the Soil Association Exchange – a farm-measurement tool backed by the Soil Association – involves a four-year programme to support the early adopting farms representing key Waitrose supply chains. This includes livestock, daiyr and horticulture.
Experts from LEAF, the University of Reading and Land App are also involved in the scheme to help farmers weather an increasingly chaotic environmental and economic climate. The ongoing drought in England is expected to last into next year, piling pressure on producers.
“Farmers want to do the right thing for nature and their businesses, but they need clear evidence, trusted advice, and fair reward,” said Joseph Gridley, CEO of Soil Association Exchange.
By tracking metrics on soil health, biodiversity, water, carbon, animal welfare, and social impact, the initiative will provide “robust measurement and build evidence of the impact of changing farming practices”.
There is much debate about the definition of regenerative agriculture, not least because so many of the world’s largest food companies are backing this transition. A number of them have agreed on core outcomes and indicators for regenerative agricultureand sustainable land use, through the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) platform. Many have set targets on the expansion of regenerative practices through their supply chains.
Regen momentum
Momentum behind regenerative agriculture, and its potential benefits in terms of a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity restoration and improved soil health is strong. Many food companies view the approaches under the ‘regenerative’ umbrella – including less reliance on chemical inputs, protection of the soil by, for example, growing cover crops, and fair pay for farmers – as crucial in their efforts to meet steep greenhouse gas emission reduction targets within their net-zero plans.
The ability to prove positive outcomes from different approaches to production will be key. Waitrose is therefore offering 100 farmers free access to Regenified, a certification scheme for regenerative agriculture, for a period of three years. Waitrose said this will make it “the first UK supermarket to independently certify regenerative farming at scale”.
Waitrose has committed to reach net-zero across its UK farms by 2035, and for all its UK farms to be using regenerative practices by 2030. Owner, the John Lewis Partnership, has committed to net-zero across its own emissions, scopes 1 and 2, by 2035. Scope 3 forest, land and agriculture (FLAG) emissions have been reduced by 15% since 2020/21, according to the retailer’s most recent ESG report.
“We are leading the way in backing British farmers, protecting nature, meeting climate goals, and building a sustainable and resilient food system from the ground up,” explained Andrew Hoad, director of Leckford and farming for nature at Waitrose.
Leckford Estate farm, which is owned by Waitrose, will be a key part of the new regenerative farming scheme. The site is already using fewer pesticides and planting new hedgerows, and will become a centre of excellence for regenerative agriculture for the supermarket and its suppliers.
Waitrose is among a number of UK retailers and brands that is financing nature-friendly and low-carbon agriculture through its supply chain.
In September, Tesco announced that 400 British farmers across the supermarket’s sustainable farming groups will benefit from additional financial incentives and data collection support to achieve key environmental and animal welfare goals.
In the same month, McDonald’s US announced $200m (£153m) of funding for regenerative farming across its beef supply chain. Suppliers including Cargill, Golden State Foods, Lopez Foods, OSI and The Coca-Cola Company are also contributing funding, which will be issued through competitive grants overseen by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
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