Sainsbury’s becomes largest Freedom Food retailer
Sainsbury’s has become the UK’s largest Freedom Food retailer in both range and volume sales of higher welfare products.
This year total Freedom Food sales have hit £143million according to Kantar Worldpanel and 60% of Sainsbury’s customers have purchased at least one Freedom Food labelled item in the past year
Sainsbury’s sells 62% of all Freedom Food endorsed food in the UK, and sales have doubled in the past year. This comes despite the tough economic conditions, with customers continuing to seek out value without compromising on their values.
Sainsbury’s data shows that volume sales of Freedom Food chicken increased by 90% between 2009 and 2010 and it is growing at a faster rate than all other fresh chicken ranges. In 2006 higher welfare chicken represented just 14% of Sainsbury’s total chicken sales and this year it is expected to be 25%.
New Mintel research this week revealed that animal welfare is Britain’s number one food concern, with almost 40% of Brits worried about this issue. It is women who are showing the greatest concern, with almost half (46%) of British women expressing concern about this issue, compared to just a third (34%) of men.
The impact of this growing trend is so significant that Sainsbury’s has committed to upgrading the minimum welfare standard of all its fresh chicken to the RSPCA welfare mark over the coming years.
Judith Batchelar, director of Sainsbury’s brand, said: “Animal welfare continues to be one of our customers’ top concerns. We’ve acted faster than any other retailer to increase the range and availability of higher welfare products at an affordable price.”
