Dear Mark Price - MD of Waitrose...

Letter #1 to Waitrose MD

Dear Mr Price

Thank you for your second email regarding the current issues with British beef products.

Yet again Waitrose leads the way in proving to genuinely care about its products and its customers. Your ethics are the reason that I prefer to shop in Waitrose over any other supermarket.

I note from your informative letter that you are intending to establish your own 'facility' that will supply and create your frozen beef products.

In my opinion, this is an important move that will allow you to retain far better control over these aspects of food production.

I would however, like to offer two suggestions:

1. Include CCTV in the setting up of the 'facility' that you mention.

There has been a campaign highlighted to me recently (following the horsemeat situation) urging an EDM to be heard in parliament discussing the issue of enforcing abatoirs to install CCTV. This is to ensure that workers treat animals as humanely as possible (as sadly, horrific stories of animal abuse, and even deliberate torture, are routinely uncovered) and that products are what they say they are.

Transparency in our food production is a must in my view - particularly if big business continues to mislead the general public. You can differentiate yourselves and regain public trust.

2. Offer a wider range of meat-free food options.

Scientific research indicates that meat production is contributing more detrimental greenhouse gases than traffic polution! And the massive increase in meat production over recent years simply isn't sustainable. It takes 3 times the amount of resources to produce meat as a food over vegetables, salads, fruits and grains etc. People wouldnt go hungry in this world if we all agreed to eat less meat. Sounds simplistic - but its true. Health would also improve (it's long been recognised that too much red meat isn't good for humans) as would customer budgets and the ability to buy more for the £ - perhaps attracting more people into your stores?!

As the head of a company which appears to care more strongly than others about important issues, I believe these current meat scandals provide you with an opportunity to set an even higher standard. You could demonstrate that, unlike most big businesses today, you still care about the welfare of humans, other animals and our planet.

Hopefully

Chantal

If you would like to email Mr Price as well you can do so here. 

Waitrose reply [from Customer Services]

Thank you for your e-mail.

Firstly, please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to you which is as a result of the high volume of e-mails being received at this time.

At Waitrose, traceability and animal welfare go hand in hand.  We know precisely where our food comes from, that it has been produced to the highest standards, and that each of our suppliers respects their livestock.  Waitrose is committed to providing the best conditions for animals at all stages of the supply chain, and to combating cruel practices.

Our dedication to animal welfare earned us the 'Compassionate Supermarket of the Year' title from leading animal welfare charity Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) twice in a row, in 2010 and 2011.  It has also helped us win the supermarket category in the RSPCA Good Business Awards in 2005 and 2007.  Waitrose gained a 'Good Egg Award' from CIWF in 2007 and 2008; the most recent following our conversion to 100 percent free range egg as an ingredient in all own label products.

Waitrose know every farmer who supplies every pack of our British pork, bacon and sausages.

Where possible we buy British: all fresh pork (including that sold as sausages), beef, bacon and poultry is British.  All of our turkeys come from the UK or Ireland.  Our organic pig farmers raise their animals outdoors with access to well aired shelters full of fresh straw bedding, and feed them an organic diet.

We own our own farm in Hampshire, the Leckford Estate, which supplies food to our Waitrose shops.

We know the parentage and history of the Aberdeen Angus and Hereford cattle that supply our beef.  All Waitrose beef comes from animals born and reared by a select group of British farmers who are committed to keeping their cattle happy and healthy.

Our lambs, supplied in season from Farm Assured sites in England, Wales and New Zealand, are reared in open pastures.

Waitrose are leading the way in promoting more sustainable fishing practices.  By having full traceability for all our fish we can be certain we do not sell any illegally caught fish, preventing the undermining of fish conservation measures.  We have switched to line fishing for supplies of cod and haddock and also introduced initiatives to make it easier for customers to identify and buy sustainably-sourced fish.

All Waitrose chickens including Waitrose Essential, Free Range and Organic are UK-hatched and reared.  We know all our farmers and can trace each bird back to its original farm. We do not sell standard intensively reared chicken and our entry level chickens (Waitrose Essential Chicken) are reared to a high standard of welfare.  Waitrose Essential chickens are reared in purpose built houses with big windows which let in plenty of natural light, and at night the birds get six full hours of darkness, 50 per cent more 'rest time' than the industry standard.  Waitrose Essential chickens also get plenty of air via high levels of ventilation and, because they are stocked at a 20 per cent lower level than the industry standard, have the freedom to move around with access to straw bales for environment enrichment and stimulation.

We know the origin of every own-label free-range egg and pint of milk.  All our own-label eggs have been free-range since 2000 and a third of these are organic.  We include only free-range eggs in all our own-label products.  Waitrose were the first supermarket to refuse to sell fresh eggs laid by hens kept in cages in 2001.  All Waitrose yogurts are made from British milk.

I hope you are reassured of Waitrose's commitment to animal welfare.  More information on our policies can be found on our website:

http://www.waitrose.com/home/inspiration/About_our_product_ranges.html

I would like to assure you that the feedback that you have provided us with has been noted and forwarded to the departments concerned, for their information.

Thank you, once again, for taking the time and trouble of writing to us.

Regards,

Dean Baker

Waitrose Customer Sales and Support.


Letter #2 to Mark Price and Customer Services

Dear Dean

Thank you for your detailed email reply.

It certainly is reassuring (to an extent) to know that Waitrose has such close links with its suppliers, but I'm afraid that your reply (which I suspect is probably a standard response that you send to people concerned about animal welfare and traceability) does not answer the two issues that I have raised in my enquiry.

My first was to suggest the installation of CCTV at your new beef processing facility - please can you advise on your plans for this.
(NB 'knowing' suppliers is no guarantee of animal welfare standards and certainly no guarantee of 'humane' treatment at slaughter.)

The second was to offer a wider range of non-meat products in your stores, as it seems to me that they are in decline.

I appreciate that you are probably extremely busy at this time of particular consumer concern - but would welcome your responses to my specific points please.

Many thanks.