Red Tractor ad banned for misleading environmental claims

A television advert from Red Tractor, the UK’s largest agricultural certification body, on supermarket shelves has been banned for exaggerating the scheme’s environmental benefits and misleading the public.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled that the organization had provided “insufficient evidence” that its farms complied with key environmental laws to support the claims in its advertising.

Environmental group River Action, which filed the complaint in 2023, said the decision demonstrated the system constituted “greenwashing” and urged supermarkets to stop using it.

But Red Tractor called the watchdog’s decision “fundamentally flawed” and argued the project was focused on animal welfare, not environmental standards.

In 2021, Red Tractor ran an advert saying, “From field to store, all our standards are met. When Red Tractor is there, your food is grown with care. »

You can watch it below.

Environmental charity River Action took issue with the advert, which ran for a further two years, and complained to the watchdog that it suggested to consumers that Red Tractor farms would “ensure a high degree of environmental protection”.

The charity highlighted an Environment Agency report, published in 2020, which looked at the number of breaches of environmental law at Red Tractor farms over the previous five years. The report concluded that these farms “do not currently constitute an indicator of good environmental performance”.

After more than two years of investigation – one of the longest – the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld the complaint.

She said Red Tractor had failed to provide “sufficient evidence” that its farms complied with “basic” environmental laws and had good environmental outcomes to support the advertising’s claims.

He also ruled that the advertising was “misleading” and “exaggerated” the benefits of the program.

River Action welcomed the ASA’s decision and called on supermarkets to take action.

“What this shows is that, because of its environmental credentials, Red Tractor has misled the public and its supplies,” said Amy Fairman, head of campaigns at River Action. “So we’re looking at suppliers like supermarkets to really look at and take stock of what’s on their shelves.”

She added that it was important to challenge such advertisements because of the risk of pollution to the environment from agricultural pollution.

In 2022, the Environmental Audit Committee concluded that agriculture was one of the most common factors preventing rivers from being healthy – affecting 40% of them. Environmental risks include sludge and pesticide runoff.

But Red Tractor, which insures 45,000 farms in the UK, has strongly resisted, calling the ASA’s findings “fundamentally flawed”.

Jim Mosley, CEO of Red Tractor, told the BBC: “They think we have implied an environmental claim. Nowhere in the voiceover or in the footage is there actually an environmental claim.”

He argued that the ASA found that only a minority of people would think the advert meant Red Tractor farms had good environmental standards, and that in fact the program is focused on other issues.

“Red Tractor’s main focus is food safety, animal welfare and traceability. Although we have some environmental standards, they are only a small part. And therefore we leave it entirely to the Environment Agency to enforce environmental legislation,” Mr Moseley said.

Asked if that meant Red Tractor didn’t know whether its farms complied with environmental laws, he said: “Correct.”

But many supermarkets refer to the environmental benefits of Red Tractor farms.

Natalie Smith, Tesco’s head of agriculture, said last month, marking Red Tractor’s 25th anniversary: ​​”Certification schemes play a key role in reassuring customers, and over the last 25 years Red Tractor has established itself as a quality brand, synonymous with… environmental protection. »

On the Morrisons website it states: “100% of the pork, beef, lamb, poultry, milk and fresh cheddar cheese we sell in our stores comes from farms certified by Red Tractor, or an approved equivalent scheme, giving customers the assurance… of environmental protection. »

Both supermarkets were asked if they respected the Red Tractor logo.

Morrisons did not respond to comment and Tesco referred the BBC to its industry body, the British Retail Consortium.

The consortium said “retailers remain committed to working with Red Tractor” but that the organization itself owns the project.