Morrisons

Please note that PAN UK updated this supermarket’s profile in March 2023 to reflect new information provided by the company. This is independent of the ranking results of 2021, which we will update in 2024 following another survey.

Morrisons came fifth out of ten supermarkets in the 2021 ranking. The company has moved up two spots since the 2019 ranking when it was placed in seventh. Morrisons has a relatively strong system in place for monitoring and reducing pesticide residues in food when compared to many other supermarkets. However, the company publishes fairly limited information on its approach to pesticides and so received a ‘could do better’ ranking on transparency. As with all other UK supermarkets, Morrisons could be doing more to reduce pesticide-related harms in its global supply chains.

How is Morrisons doing on pesticides?

Supporting suppliers to use non-chemical alternatives

Making good progress

(Updated in March 2023)

Since 2019, Morrisons has implemented a wide range of measures designed to support its suppliers to reduce their pesticide use and adopt non-chemical alternatives. The company has trained a technical team to offer on-the-ground advice to farmers, and has set up grower groups which meet twice per year to encourage suppliers to share best practice, case studies and innovations in non-chemical alternatives and pesticide reduction.

The company provides training and guidance to suppliers, and told PAN UK that it conducts research on non-chemical pest control methods. It is currently working with one of its root vegetable suppliers to conduct trials exploring whether the use of cover crops can reduce the need for pesticides on potatoes.

Morrisons makes efforts to reduce post-harvest use of pesticides through a range of measures including using biopesticides and non-chemical treatment for rots where possible and ensuring that produce is packed, stored and transported in a way which lessens the need for fungicides (which prevent fresh produce from rotting).

Monitoring and reducing pesticide residues in food

Making good progress

(Updated in March 2023)

Morrisons continue to test a variety of products for pesticide residues including fruit and vegetables, rice, eggs, meat, processed food and wheat products such as bread and pasta. The company has expanded this range since 2019 to also now include tea, spices and organic products. Whilst this is not as extensive a range as some other supermarkets, the company did tell PAN UK that it has a “rolling programme for residue surveillance” which prioritises crops identified as higher risk, meaning that the list of items tested changes year-on-year.

In response to being asked how the company deals with the most serious residue problems, Morrisons told PAN UK that when a problem emerges an investigation will be conducted and an action plan is agreed between the company’s Technical Team and its independent pesticide consultants. This corrective occurs in a number of circumstances including when the company’s testing programme identifies a product containing residues of more than 50 percent of the legal limit set by regulators. Morrisons has decreased this threshold from 80% which is a positive step, particularly since many supermarkets only take action when the legal residue limit is actually exceeded. Morrisons told PAN UK that it uses the results from its residue testing programme to both inform which pesticides to prioritise for phase-out, and to identify which farmers need greater support to switch to non-chemical alternatives.

Reducing harm caused to bees and pollinators

Making good progress

(Updated in March 2023)

Morrisons has made limited progress in minimising the harms caused to pollinators by pesticide use within its supply chains. Morrisons told PAN UK that it carries out assessments looking at the risks posed by specific pesticides to bees. If the company’s risk assessment identifies that a pesticide has the potential to be particularly harmful then its use will be monitored, restricted or banned entirely. While Morrisons does still allow bee-toxic neonicotinoids within its supply chains, it has restricted their use which means that growers must apply to the company for permission, show that they have explored all alternatives pest control methods prior to use and justify why those alternative methods aren’t an option. Morrisons also told PAN UK that it supports research on the effects of pesticides on pollinators and makes it available to suppliers. In March 2023, the company told PAN UK that it was monitoring the uptake of LEAF certification among its UK and overseas growers.

However, Morrisons could be doing more. While the company gave examples of specific suppliers that they are working with to adopt pollinator-friendly practices and monitor pollinator activity, these efforts appear to be fairly limited in scope. Morrisons should expand these efforts across its entire supply chain to require all of its growers to get involved in protecting bees and pollinators from pesticides.

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Engaging with customers on reducing pesticide use

Making good progress

(Updated in March 2023)

Morrisons has strengthened its efforts to involve customers in reducing pesticide use in their supply chains:

  • Morrisons sells fruit and vegetables that aren’t perfect through its “Naturally Wonky” range, thereby reducing the need for cosmetic pesticides. The company told us that it has increased this range to now offer 51 varieties of produce, one of the biggest selections of all supermarkets. They have also included ‘imperfect’ vegetables in their vegan food boxes. Morrisons also encourages its customers to choose ‘wonky’ fruit and vegetables via TV adverts and through online and in-store promotions. In March 2023, Morrisons reported a 37% rise in the volume of sales of ‘wonky’ produce. The company has updated the packaging and now includes recipes promoting the use of wonky produce on its website.
  • In response to complaints from customers who find a bug in fresh produce, Morrisons explains that this may be because their suppliers are using less pesticides. In March 2023, the company told PAN UK that it will be trialling new signs on shelves in several stores over late July and August explaining that pests may be present in fresh produce due to reduced pesticide use. As far as PAN UK is aware, this would be the first time one of the top ten UK supermarkets has run a proactive public communications campaign about pesticides.
  • The company is also making considerable efforts to promote fruit and vegetables that are in season and therefore more likely to be grown closer to home. They do this by giving more shelf space to seasonal and local produce, and making sure that their staff encourage customers to select these options. Keeping supply chains short tends to lessen the need to use fungicides which prevent fresh produce from rotting while they are being transported.

Boosting organic sales

Making good progress

(Updated in March 2023)

Morrisons’ organic range includes over 400 different items, including 32 ‘fresh produce lines’. The company relaunched a rebranded organic fresh produce range in 2022 with an aim to offer organic produce to customers in more of its stores. Morrisons has set up a dedicated team of buyers focussed on boosting organic sales and plans to source organic products from some of its existing non-organic suppliers, thereby encouraging them to switch to organic. While the company told PAN UK that it promotes organic products online and in-store, and has run panels asking customers for their opinions on organic, it does not currently communicate the benefits of buying organic to its customers.

Phasing out the most hazardous pesticides

(Updated in March 2023)

Morrisons has a written commitment to phase out highly hazardous pesticides and lists of pesticides which it monitors, restricts or prohibits from being used in its global supply chains. The company published a new pesticide policy in August 2022 which includes actions around the use and phase out of pesticides sitting on its restricted list. Morrisons also told PAN UK that it does occasionally go beyond national regulations and is currently phasing-out the use of Indoxacarb which is a highly hazardous pesticide approved for use in the UK. The company has also put in place additional measures to protect workers applying pesticides that are known to be particularly harmful to human health. These measures include requiring suppliers to monitor worker health through the use of blood tests which are able to detect acute pesticide poisoning.

However, whilst Morrisons has added a number of additional pesticides to its prohibited list, it continues to allow the use of some of the most hazardous pesticides such as paraquat which, despite being behind many cases of pesticide poisoning deaths worldwide and also toxic to aquatic life, remains on the company’s monitored list.

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Selling pesticide products

Could do better

(Updated in March 2023)

In common with the majority of UK supermarkets, Morrisons continues to sell pesticides on its shelves. Since the last supermarket ranking in 2019, however, Morrisons has made some positive changes to its range. The company has replaced all glyphosate-based products with weedkillers containing more benign active ingredients such as pelargonic and acetic acid. It also now sells slug killer containing ferric phosphate which is approved for use in organic farming. In March 2023, Morrisons told PAN UK that it has now stopped selling all products containing pyrethrins and cypermethrin (insecticides) in its gardening range and replaced them with “non toxic” alternatives. The company is conducting a full review of its range of gardening pesticide products for 2024.

In contrast to some other supermarkets, Morrisons doesn’t sell own-brand pesticide products. On the other hand, the company continues to offer deals and discounts on pesticides which can encourage shoppers to buy more than they need and lead to unused pesticides being poured down the sink or put in landfill which can contaminate water and soil. Offering deals contravenes the UN International Code of Conduct on Pesticide Management which says that retailers should not offer “incentives or gifts to encourage the purchase of pesticides”. However, Morrisons did tell PAN UK that while it does offer price reductions on pesticide products it does not offer volume-based promotions such as “buy 2 save £X”.

Morrisons is also failing to provide customers with guidance on either non-chemical alternatives or on how to minimise the health and environmental risks associated to using pesticide products, beyond the information provided on the product label.

Being transparent about pesticides

(Updated in March 2023)

Morrisons has increased its transparency by creating a webpage outlining its approach to pesticides and setting out general concerns for pollinators, the environment, customers and growers. The company now also publishes its Fresh Produce Pesticide Policy (latest version published in August 2022) which includes the list of pesticides that are monitored, restricted and banned from use within its supply chains. However, Morrisons could be more transparent regarding pesticides. While the company does publish general information on its in-house pesticide residue testing programme, it fails to name specific pesticides or types of produce. As a result, it remains impossible for Morrisons’ customers to base shopping decisions on which products are most likely to contain pesticide residues.

What is PAN UK asking supermarkets to do?

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How do the supermarkets compare?

Click on the logos below for more detail on how each supermarket is doing on pesticides.

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How is Morrisons doing on pesticides?
How is Sainsbury's doing on pesticides?
How is Tesco doing on pesticides?
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