Sainsbury’s has moved to shore up its salad aisles by striking long-term deals with British producers amid fears that drought and other weather shocks abroad could disrupt imports of key vegetables.
Long-term supply deals to strengthen resilience
The supermarket group, Britain’s second largest, has agreed 10-year partnerships with Evesham Vale Growers and Thanet Earth. The aim is to increase the availability of British-grown tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers for customers and reduce vulnerability to weather-related shortages in overseas suppliers.
Sainsbury’s said the agreements would begin to be reflected on shelves as early as this summer with a new own-brand pack, the Taste the Difference British Salad Selection 800g, while Thanet Earth will work to extend UK cucumber production further into the winter months.
How the growers will help
- Thanet Earth, the UK’s largest single-site glasshouse complex, will use managed lighting, heat and CO2 to support a winter cucumber crop.
- Evesham Vale Growers will supply British tomatoes and peppers to bolster volume during peak and shoulder seasons.
The move follows previous episodes when bad weather combined with transport problems across parts of north Africa and Europe to create shortages of tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, lettuce and salad bags in UK supermarkets.
“With our changing weather, it’s more important than ever to find new, innovative solutions to make sure our customers can continue to enjoy the quality produce they want all year-round,”
Those were the words of Hannah O’Reilly, Sainsbury’s category director for produce, who said the retailer was investing in British production and supplier innovation to build a “stronger, more resilient supply chain” in a category that has been hit by weather-related shocks.
What this means for shoppers and local growers
For shoppers in Bury and across Greater Manchester the deals promise steadier supplies of popular salad vegetables and could reduce the likelihood of supermarket rationing in future droughts. For growers the agreements offer guaranteed markets and the investment certainty needed to adopt technologies such as extended-season glasshouse production.
| Partner | Primary produce | Key benefit |
|---|---|---|
| Thanet Earth | Cucumbers | Extended winter production via controlled environment |
| Evesham Vale Growers | Tomatoes & peppers | Increased British supply across seasons |
Sainsbury’s stressed that British-grown tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers already formed an important part of its salad offer, but said extreme weather in warmer growing regions had highlighted the need to reduce reliance on imports. The retailer also signalled that customers would see product changes on shelves in the short term.
Local consumers concerned about availability or pricing can look for the new British-labelled packs this summer and watch for further announcements from Sainsbury’s and its suppliers as the agreements are implemented.
This development sits alongside wider industry efforts to strengthen domestic horticulture capacity, improve supply-chain resilience and limit the impact of increasingly unpredictable international growing seasons on UK supermarket stocks.
— Ethan Green, Bury Correspondent
