UK supermarkets are not doing enough to protect human health, wildlife or the environment from pesticides. They are also failing to be transparent about pesticides, so a concerned shopper trying to find out what chemicals they and their family are exposed to has nowhere to go. The information isn’t on food labels or supermarket websites.
In 2019, PAN UK surveyed and ranked the top ten UK supermarkets. We found that they could all be doing more to reduce pesticide-related harms linked to their global supply chains.
But we also discovered that some supermarkets are doing much better than others.
The ranking in more detail
PAN UK’s ranking is based on an assessment of how each supermarket is doing on eight key topics related to pesticides.
Take a look at our Pesticide Scorecard below to see how your supermarket ranked on these specific areas.
How do the supermarkets compare?
Click on the logos below for more detail on how each supermarket is doing on pesticides.
Topics we reviewed
Click on the icons below for more detail on the eight topics in the ranking.
Why are we running this campaign?
Pesticides can drive irreversible harms to both human health and the environment. The evidence linking pesticides to diseases such as cancer and Parkinson’s increases year-on-year. Meanwhile, recent studies have named pesticides as one of the key drivers of biodiversity losses which have placed one million species at risk of extinction.
The evidence clearly shows that we urgently need to reduce our pesticide use and UK supermarkets have a key role to play. With their sprawling supply chains and powerful influence over how food is produced, they are uniquely positioned to drive a wholesale shift away from pesticides and towards non-chemical alternatives, not just in the UK but globally.
PAN UK is keen to work directly with UK supermarkets to help them implement the kind of changes we so urgently need to move towards a healthier and more sustainable future.