Our farmers

We’re committed to supporting British farmers:

100% fresh and frozen meat is British, this also includes when used as an ingredient in products like as sandwiches, pies and ready meals.

100% British on fresh milk, fresh cream and cheddar cheese.

100% British on potatoes and carrots.

By supporting British farming, we can boost the economies of communities across the UK and ensure the highest standards of animal welfare.

We actively support and promote higher welfare standards for farm animals, ensuring they have access to spacious and enriched environments, appropriate veterinary care, and are free from unnecessary suffering through the support of animal welfare schemes such as Red Tractor, RSPCA Assured, and our own-brand animal welfare standards.

We’re supporting British farming communities by sourcing 100% British for our fresh and frozen meat, fresh milk and cream, Cheddar cheese, potatoes and carrots.

From field to table, we are committed to supporting growers to provide you with delicious, fresh produce

Meet the producers

Reducing our impact

We work hard to make sure the ingredients we use in our goods are sourced as sustainably as possible.

We are working with our farming groups, through projects such as our sustainability fund to support them to measure, monitor and manage their land sustainably and to protect and enhance nature on their farms.

Our farming groups

Everything we sell is sourced from suppliers who are passionate about what they produce and how they produce it. Everyone we work with has been chosen because they share our belief in honesty, fairness and trust, and are able to work to our strict standards in welfare and quality. In return, our Farming Groups provide networks that help farmers share knowledge and invest in their farms.

Everything we do is based on our strategic Pillars that benefit everyone and guarantee the food you buy is ethical, sustainable and of exceptional quality. Discover how we’re working to improve the lives of everyone throughout our supply chain, from the communities to the people who work in our stores.

Co-op Farming and Food Pillars

Environmental Mapping

We believe that taking a proactive approach to finding a more sustainable future for farmers will not only help to increase efficiency, but will also show our members and customers that we’re taking their requirements seriously. That’s why we invested in a 3-year project to map the environmental impact of producers across our seven Coop Farming Groups. We’ve now completed the third and final year of our Co-op Farming Enviro-Map project, which measures carbon footprints and biodiversity across our Farming Groups. Our farmers will soon be able to use their individual reports to see how their carbon footprint has changed between Year 1 and Year 3. They can also benchmark themselves against the average performance for their group. You can find our 3 year summary report here.

Training young farmers

In April 2016, we launched our Co-op Farming Pioneers programme which took groups of young farmers, aged between 21 and 35 through a free 30-month training programme. The aim of the programme was to help young farmers develop their business and personal skills to better equip them for the future of farming, as well as exploring salient issues like mental health. The programme came to an end in November 2023, and over the years has successfully given over 100 young farmers access to this programme, enabling those Pioneers to make changes within their farming enterprises to create a more efficient, forward-thinking business.

Mary who graduated in October 2018 had this to say about the programme:

“I joined Co-Op Pioneers in April 2016. It was the first of the Pioneers group and ran until October 2018. The programme has been a great opportunity to develop my business skills and has helped me focus on taking our business forward. I’m now in joint partnership with my father and in 2019 I succeeded the farm tenancy, something which would not have happened as quickly and easily without the support and competence I have gained from the programme. The pioneers allowed me to meet some forward-thinking farmers and make connections which will last a lifetime.”