By Bev Shah, co-CEO at City Hive
A few weeks back, I bought a punnet of strawberries from the supermarket. My only thoughts were about their origin, whether I had cream to accompany them, and if my kids would devour them before I had a chance. However, thanks to an eye-opening experience organised by CCLA Investment Management and ethical trade consultancy Impactt I have forever changed how I view not only strawberries, but all produce I purchase.
The invitation was to join a group invited to learn about the UK Seasonal Workers Scheme, established by DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). This scheme involves hearing from stakeholders across the value chain and included an on-site visit to a farm. The experience highlighted issues that many would not associate with the UK.
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We started by looking at the lives of vulnerable migrant workers who leave their homes to help our farmers harvest crops due to a shortage of local labour.
Recruiters and scheme operators face numerous challenges in sourcing workers and sponsoring their visas, including maintaining worker welfare. Farmers are under immense cost pressures, producing for supermarket giants, and balancing various headwinds.
NGOs and advocacy groups shared their work to ensure seasonal workers globally are not paying for employment—a basic international convention still not uniformly enforced in the UK. They also pointed out some UK practices, while not technically illegal, effectively strip workers of their choices and rights.
Consumer blindness
Marketeers are experts at painting a picture and supermarket marketeers are also super marketers. After all, they know how to sell mass produced battery-farmed chicken meat. How do they market such a brutal process to consumers who prefer to believe their meat comes from free-range birds? They employ three strategies:
1. Label Authority: Labels such as “Farm Fresh” and “100% Natural” imply validation, making consumers believe the product is trustworthy without questioning the actual practices.
2. Focus on Progress: Emphasising efficiency and innovation diverts attention from the harsh realities of mass production.
3. Wilful Blindness: Consumers choose to ignore uncomfortable truths, allowing unfair and unethical practices to continue unchallenged.
While many are aware of the conditions in which chickens are raised, fewer consider the implications for produce like their strawberries. My visit with CCLA and Impactt to a high-tech strawberry farm, supplying year-round to M&S and Tesco, was revealing. We saw an intensive operation far from the idyllic fields many imagine.
We weren’t just there to learn about agriculture, but to understand the treatment of seasonal workers in the UK. This brought to light the often-overlooked intent and implications of each stage of the process, similar to how minor issues in culture and accountability in fund management can derail long-term returns.
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DEFRA’s balancing act between supporting farmers and adhering to government immigration policies is delicate. Some argue the scheme’s issues stem from prioritising policy over farmers’ needs, highlighting the fine balance between sustainability and profitability.
The role of investors
As investors, we wield significant influence and can drive positive change by insisting on ethical behaviour from the companies we invest in. Challenging company management on the importance of equality and fair treatment in their operations can lead to long-term benefits, both ethically and financially.
Addressing wilful blindness, where individuals deliberately avoid information to escape responsibility, is crucial in these endeavours.
We can change this by:
- Encouraging and valuing transparency.
- Holding teams and individuals accountable for deliberate ignorance.
- Implementing robust governance frameworks to detect and address potential issues proactively.
Regulators clearly want the investment industry to be more rigorous in their disclosures and accountability too with the introduction of Consumer Duty last year, and the Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR). The latter’s anti-greenwashing measures were rolled out in May and require firms’ sustainability claims to be fair, clear and not misleading, while Consumer Duty focuses on evidencing throughout the value chain.
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We all have a part to play but as consumers and investors, our actions and choices play a crucial role in fostering a fair and ethical marketplace.
We need to consider labour laws and how we treat our workers as part of the Just Transition. It’s often unclear what steps we can take, but as shareholders, we can challenge companies like supermarkets on their efforts to ensure ethical labour practices for the food on their shelves.
I now want to ensure the food I consume is harvested ethically.
