UK dairy industry values Red Tractor farm assurance scheme
According to the organisation’s sector chairman, British farm assurance scheme Red Tractor has never been more important to the UK dairy industry.
Angela Rhodes says the Red Tractor logo assures consumers that a product has been produced in the UK to strict standards covering traceability, food safety and animal welfare.
Red Tractor assures more than 13 billion litres of milk produced in the UK from around 11,500 businesses.
Rhodes says the volume of cheap imported dairy products could increase post Brexit, and so it is vital farm-assured food stands out on the shelves.
“Our research shows that about two-thirds of consumers recognise the logo but only half can explain what it stands for and we want to improve that.
“As we move towards and beyond Brexit, one of the keys to success will be ensuring stronger consumer support,” she adds.
The UK exported 163,000 tonnes of cheese and nearly 40,000 tonnes of butter in 2016, Rhodes hopes that the work put in to developing the assurance scheme over the past 20 years will help sell UK produced food across the world.
“The UK’s trading partners need assurances that the product they are buying meets certain standards and I hope that our farm assurance scheme can be something that negotiators can hang their hat on,” she concludes.
