FAIR trading conditions are needed for British food producers, in the same way as they are needed for tea and coffee farmers in the Third World, according to the founder of the Countryside Restoration Trust, Robin Page.
He made his comments at the recent Country Crossroads Forum held recently at the Jersey Evening Post West Show, where he said that the ‘armlock’ of the supermarket chains in the UK had to be broken.
Mr Page said: ‘Tesco sells Jersey potatoes, which is great if Jersey producers have got a deal for a year or two.
But what will they do if Tesco offer them at a price lower than the cost of production?’ This had happened, he said, many times to UK farmers and growers from their supermarket customers, and supermarkets exercised an extraordinary degree of control.
Article posted on 22nd July, 2004 - 12.00am
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