Marks & Spencer (M&S) has launched new initiatives under its Plan A sustainability programme, as it aims to increase the availability of British-grown produce and reduce carbon emissions from imported fruits and vegetables.
The high street retailer is working with long-term supply partners to trial innovative techniques that extend the growing season and improve crop yields. The new scheme is set to lower food miles and offer customers more local products for longer periods.
As of this week (27 May), M&S has become the first UK supermarket to offer early-season British Tenderstem broccoli, available now both in-store and via Ocado, three weeks ahead of the usual season start in June.
The crop, grown by a British supplier for 25 years, was developed using polytunnels and other technologies to bring forward the growing cycle. British-grown Tenderstem now makes up over half of M&S’s offer, with expectations that this will hit 100% by the end of May.
The initiative builds on M&S’s longstanding collaboration with the Chinn family, growers who have been supplying the retailer with British asparagus for more than two decades. Together, they’ve been experimenting with field and greenhouse techniques to stretch the season, with the first British asparagus now expected to arrive in stores before Christmas.
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In addition to vegetables, the Plan A programme is turning its focus to soft fruit. M&S is trialling precision pollination technology to enhance the volume and quality of British strawberries, including its own Red Diamond, King and White Pearl varieties.
The trials, backed by the Plan A Accelerator Fund, involve three farms working alongside agri-tech company AgriSound to monitor bumblebee activity and identify gaps in pollination across polytunnels and glasshouses.
Where low activity is detected, growers are introducing new bee habitats, relocating hives or planting companion species to attract pollinators naturally. Academic research suggests these techniques can lead to better berry size and quality, as well as supporting wider biodiversity on farms.
“Everything at M&S is grown and made with care and we’re always looking for innovation and technology to farm more sustainably to do the right thing for our customers and the planet,” said M&S Food head of produce Elizabeth van Niekerk.
“We know our customers want to shop more seasonably, that’s exactly what these projects will help them to do, if rolled out across our entire supply chain. With more British produce grown over longer seasons, we can reduce our freight emissions.
“Using the latest tech to target pollination would help our growers increase their yield of high quality British strawberries on our shelves. By trialling these projects, we’ll be able to learn with and support our growers and partners to roll these out at commercial scale, to ultimately make it easier for our customers to make sustainable choices when shopping with us.”
The new projects form part of M&S’s wider Plan A commitment to become a net-zero business across its value chain by 2040. In February, M&S rolled out lower carbon parsnips that have been grown autonomously, marking the first project to be funded by its Plan A Accelerator Fund.