Trust - the missing link

In retail, as with many industries and areas of public life today, trust remains hard to define – hard to gain, easy to lose and difficult to quantify. Trust is also frequently cited as the missing link in the agricultural supply chain with the market, which is characterised by unpredictable and unfair returns for those closest to the land.

The voice of the retail sector and main publication, The Grocer asserted the following view, early on in 2017:

“The retailers that will outperform today are the ones that have time to think outside the box, understand their consumers, bring new projects and brands to the market and collaborate with their suppliers.”

Why then is the supply chain not working together to try and smooth out pressures which generate the peaks and troughs in commodity pricing in the annual calendar? Is it not time to focus thoughts and strategy on insulating the market from the potential ravages of Brexit, given where we are with so many known unknowns?

The UK’s biggest retailer, Tesco set out in 2017 with one of the company’s main objectives to rebuild trust with the supply base and the consumer. With Dave Lewis at the helm and despite a difficult market, it could be argued Tesco has done this, but at what cost.

The buying teams in Tesco and all of the retailers have been decimated, and experience is no longer a safe haven. Attracting and retaining consumers has been prioritised at the expense of working through long-term buying contracts, and horizon planning. The much-maligned Farm Brands ranges performed well, delivering +4% YOY growth, and the controversial brand felt little of the farmer’s wrath. Many other players in the retail sector have had also to reinvent themselves and their offer, faced with adversity.

If anything, in early 2018, the competitive market and the fragile supply base will continue to mean no buyer’s job is secure. If trust is a goal, and this value is in essence a relationship concept, communication is critical, but if buyers are thinking short termism with few opportunities for conversations, the going will continue to be bumpy and unpredictable underfoot.

With this in mind, Brexit is the opportunity for leadership and creative thinking for the sector, for sub sectors to come together, for sharing knowledge and for all businesses to adapt and focus on their cost base. There is a real need to bring the retailers to the table too and raise the concerns now, so they have the opportunity to buy into a leaner and more progressive sector.

In partnership, industry leaders need to consistently project a positive image and message to raise the profile of farming’s contribution and educate the millennial generation. The language needs to change and farming needs to own its story, its contribution resulting from a forward thinking sector that merits support, rather than the retail sector picking through its merits to give its offer substance.

Farming has the potential to positively impact current political agendas – health, the environment, jobs for the future, an education on food and the rural economy and our reputation for premium food and drink. Now is the opportunity to start beefing up and leveraging the story the retail sector has coveted for quite some time and fight to share the proceeds. At the end of the day, if we can work to align interests, implement a consistent strategy and policies to support this, then trust is a reasonable response.