UK supermarkets 'way off track' to meet 'critical and urgent' environmental targets: WWF

UK supermarkets are not on track to meet crucial environmental targets, according to WWF’s latest report, What’s in Store for the Planet 2024.

Published on Tuesday (3), the annual report reveals piecemeal progress since last year and clear areas of concern – with supermarkets a long way off meeting the goal of halving the environmental impact of the average UK weekly shop by 2030.

Despite a welcome increase in data voluntarily submitted by the supermarkets, the report – an in-depth review of the UK grocery market’s impact across seven key areas – warns that supermarkets are off track on a number of measures, with some lagging behind in key areas such as climate and deforestation.

The way we produce food, the report says, is ultimately failing not just the environment but consumers and farmers too.

WWF warns supermarkets are “way off track” to meet the “critical and urgent” 2025 target to ensure that the products on their shelves aren’t destroying tropical forests that teem with life and help absorb carbon.

Despite engagement from the supermarkets to tackle deforestation and the loss of wild places – through industry coalitions and calls for robust due diligence legislation to ensure that commodities such as beef, cocoa, palm oil and soy entering the UK are not causing nature loss – progress has stalled, with dominant international traders refusing to respond to calls for effective origin control on all supplies and the last government failing to deliver promised legislation.

Yet irresponsible palm oil production, for example, has been – and continues to be – a major driver of deforestation of some of the world’s most biodiverse forests. Palm oil is found in nearly 50 per cent of the packaged products we find in supermarkets – from pizza, doughnuts and chocolate, to deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste and lipstick.

Without urgent action, warns the report, the retailers’ 2030 science-based climate targets are highly likely to be missed, putting the future of our food system – and planet – at risk.

The data does reveal some positive steps forward this year, indicating that progress is possible:

• Climate: Mostsupermarkets that submitted data have made progress towards near-term Scope 1 (direct) and Scope 2 (indirect) emissions reduction targets, and in setting 1.5°C-aligned Scope 3 (value chain) targets in line with the Science Based Targets Initiative’s (SBTi’s) Forestry, Land-use, and Agriculture (FLAG) guidance.
• Marine: For the first time, four supermarkets have shared some data on wild-caught seafood species adhering to all aspects of the Seafood Jurisdictional Initiative (SJI), while reported figures for certified seafood are at 88%.
• Agriculture: Supermarkets that submitted data are, on average, sourcing more than 50% of their UK-sourced produce from land within robust schemes to manage soil health and biodiversity. However, only half of the retailers provided data, so the sector-wide picture is unclear.
• Improved transparency: 10 out of 11 major UK food supermarkets – representing 90% of the grocery market – shared more data this year than ever before. Continuing to improve levels of transparency is vital for informed decision-making, building resilient supply chains, and tracking progress toward sustainability goals.

The report highlights that while some retailers are leading the way and making necessary changes in some areas, collective and accelerated action is urgently needed: governments must regulate, commodity traders must reform, and supermarkets must help consumers to make healthy sustainable choices.

Tanya Steele, chief executive at WWF, said:“Consumers should not have to worry about whether their food shop is fuelling the climate crisis or pushing precious wildlife closer to the brink.

“How we produce food remains one of the biggest threats to our planet. And while it's positive that UK supermarkets have pledged to source their food responsibly, they must now follow through.

"Supermarkets depend on nature and a stable climate for the food they sell, and most people want to buy sustainably. Unless supermarkets prioritise this, we will all suffer the consequences.

“The UK government must now step in and urgently introduce the long-awaited due diligence regulations to prevent further destruction of our forests and natural habitats. Without them, supermarkets will continue to pay lip service while the planet pays the price for their inaction – putting us all at risk.”

Sir Dave Lewis, chair of trustees at WWF, said: "Supermarkets have a crucial to play in the sustainability of our food system and therefore the climate, but they are falling short of their climate and nature targets and missing them isn’t just bad for business – it’s a recipe for disaster.

"If supermarkets fail to act now, the impacts of environmental crises will only worsen, with even more consequences for supply chains, prices, and the ecosystems they rely on.

"With supply chains already on the brink and customers demanding change, it’s time for supermarkets to lead the charge toward a sustainable future.”

WWF is calling on the supermarkets to hold firm to their commitments and face the challenges ahead with renewed determination and collaboration, sharing solutions within the sector to support a fair transition to sustainable food production.

In the report, WWF warns that a repeated failure by governments and businesses to address deforestation and the destruction of wild places is putting the climate, nature and food security at risk. Globally, food production uses 40 per cent of habitable land and is responsible for a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions.

Yet the devastating effects of the climate and nature crises – from unpredictable weather patterns, droughts and declines in pollinators, to disasters that flood fields and ruin produce – are heavily disrupting production and reducing food security, presenting a major challenge for the sector and leading to shortages and rising prices.

Shockingly, since the WWF Basket launched in 2021, the world has lost over 7.9 million hectares of tree cover – an area almost the size of Austria.