Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with large supermarkets on the potential impact of (a) food pricing and (b) supermarkets' buying practices on food producers.

Defra regularly engages with supermarkets and producers about a range of measures they can take to ensure the availability of affordable food.  These measures include maintaining value ranges, price matching and price freezing.  However, it is for each individual food retailer to make commercial decisions regarding the products in their stores, as the Government does not interfere in day-to-day operations.

The Government is firmly committed to ensuring food producers receive a fair price for their products, and to tackling unfairness in the supply chain wherever it exists.

On 13 March, Fair Dealing Regulations for the pig sector were introduced and are currently progressing through the parliamentary process. Similar regulations for the eggs and fresh produce sectors will follow, with the Government prepared to intervene in any sector where fairness issues are identified.

Where farmers sell directly to retailers, their agreements will be covered within the scope of the sectoral regulations that we are introducing through powers in the Agriculture Act 2020.

Additionally, the Government is committed to ensuring that everyone has access to nutritious, affordable food. The recently launched Food Strategy will look to outline measures to make healthy food accessible and affordable for the whole population.