The news that Waitrose has today raised its payments to beef farmers by 10p a kilo, giving farmers a minimum base price of at least £2.25 per kilo, is very welcome.
The retailer has also introduced a series of structured payment increases over the next 18 months with the aim of reaching base level payments to its beef producers of £2.50.
The new long term pricing structure is designed to give farmers some protection and allow them to plan ahead.
Waitrose will also pay lamb farmers a minimum of £2.30 a kilo for British lamb for the rest of the season. This is well above the market level which has seen prices plummet as low as £1.70 a kilo in the last fortnight.
Peter King, chief livestock adviser for the NFU, said: “This is a much needed step which will see a supermarket sharing risk with farmers. We will be encouraging other retailers to take similar steps to protect the supply of British beef and lamb.”
I hope the other supermarkets take note.