Increased supply of organic poultry in Britain
Increased demand for organic poultry in Britain has led to an agreement between British supermarket chain Sainsbury’s and Devon poultry processor Lloyd Maunder to increase supplies of organic poultry.
To encourage more farmers to commit to organic poultry production, Sainsbury’s has said it will buy 25 percent more each year for the next two years. Lloyd Maunder has agreed to make every effort to produce at least that increase in volume, dedicated to Sainsbury’s stores.
“We are seeing some amazing rates of growth,” said Lloyd Maunder director Andrew Maunder. “And managing these rates of expansion takes organisation and long-term commitment by everyone involved. And it’s not just Sainsbury’s we are supplying – other supermarkets are pressing us for supplies too. But Sainsbury’s is still our largest customer and we owe them our loyalty because they backed us when organic chicken was a very new and untested market.”
Matt Johnson, the organic meat buyer for Sainsbury’s, said: “our organic sales are now rising at between 30 and 40 percent year on year, and we’re quite certain there is plenty of headroom in the market. Customers know of our commitment to organics and organic chicken is a major component of that range. We are determined to drive sales in organic meat, especially organic chicken, but to do this we must have the product to keep pace with the demand.”
