Biodiversity
Biodiversity is critical to maintaining the natural ecosystems that safeguard food security worldwide. Overapplication of pesticides and unsustainable land use means the plants, animals and microorganisms that pollinate our crops, clean our air and fertilise our soil are being lost, putting global food security at risk. At Waitrose, we want to ensure our food is produced in a way that preserves and enhances key natural resources and maintains and increases biodiversity.
The Waitrose agriculture plan sets out our commitment to farm with nature, enhance biodiversity and regenerate the natural resources we rely on. We’re already making strides to protect biodiversity within the Waitrose fresh produce category. We were the first major UK retailer to insist all our conventional (non-organic) UK fresh fruit and vegetables are grown to Linking Environment And Farming (LEAF) Marque Standards, with a focus on nature-friendly farming and minimising our impact on the environment. In 2021, we became the first major retailer to sign up to The UK Robust Potato Pledge, which will see us move away from the use of copper-based fungicides to combat late blight Phytophthora on our organic fresh potatoes. We have pledged to grow and sell only resistant or ‘robust’ organic fresh potatoes by 2026, provided that these varieties meet the required quality, thus removing the need to employ potentially harmful copper fungicides.
In our dairy supply chains, all farmers are encouraged to devote at least 10% of their dairy farm to biodiversity and habitat management. We encourage planting mixed leys, including legumes such as red or white clover, which is nutritious for cows and beneficial for bees.
Our Waitrose egg farmers have used a seed mix to plant over 100 acres of wildflowers, providing much-needed food for bees and butterflies which, in turn, provide food for farmland birds. The summer flowering of these wildflowers will offer a rich nectar food source for up to four years.
View our policy on the use of pesticides.