pladis, the global snacking company behind some of the UK’s most loved and iconic brands, is highlighting its support for British farmers and its commitment to British wheat with a new design across the best-loved McVitie’s Digestives Original range.
Rolling across grocery, wholesale and convenience channels from the end of July, the pack declares the use of ‘100% British Wheat’ and ‘Partnering with Farmers’. The image addresses the growing importance of provenance to British consumers, where they want to better understand where and how their food is produced.
It underlines pladis’ commitment to supporting British farming through its Back to Farm programme, which involves just over 50 farmers, providing financial and practical support to help them introduce regenerative farming methods. Through the programme, over 4,000 hectares are already farmed using regenerative practices, producing over 30,000 tonnes of grain – roughly equivalent to the annual wheat requirement for McVitie’s Original Digestives.
“We are proud to showcase our commitment to British farmers – and therefore our Back to Farm programme – on-pack by letting progressively knowledgeable and engaged consumers know that we use only British-grown wheat in all our McVitie’s Original Digestives,” says Jennifer Parise, Director Procurement, pladis UK&I. “We also help to support British farmers through Back to Farm in which wheat is grown using regenerative practices aimed at improving soil health and biodiversity.
“Back to Farm is delivered in partnership with Frontier Agriculture. The scheme operates a flexible, tiered recognition system that’s designed to acknowledge existing regenerative practices and encourage further progress at farm level.
“Our goal is to have over 50% of all wheat used in our UK-baked products grown through our Back to Farm programme by the end of 2030, and having more growers and more land farmed as part of our programme is critical to this.
“Over time, we aim to support yields from wheat grown with regenerative practices and improve the resilience of our ingredients to climate change, with plans to expand into other crops in the future.”
The programme actions, developed with support from Frontier and implemented by participating growers, focus on soil health, biodiversity and water management, and growers are given flexibility to adapt their programmes to suit their business and local conditions.
“What I value about the Back to Farm programme is that it recognises every farm is different,” says Charlotte Garbutt, who runs Edworth Manor Farm. “It gives us clear guidance on pladis’ vision for sustainable wheat sourcing, but it also gives me the flexibility to prioritise what works best for my land and my business.
“My family has farmed this land for 230 years and I want it to continue for generations to come, so taking care of the soil that produces our crops is what matters most to me. Back to Farm recognises and supports the work that goes into growing wheat, not just the final product, helping to ensure farms like ours can keep producing quality crops into the future.”
“Building a sustainable future is a shared responsibility,” concludes Jennifer Parise. “We know farmers are interested in regenerative farming, but adopting or increasing these practices requires support, as farm businesses adapt to a changing agricultural policy landscape. With Back to Farm, we hope to build stronger partnerships with growers, helping them address challenges and making regenerative farming practices that support food production more accessible in the future.”
*Frontier Agriculture
Frontier Agriculture was founded in 2005, and is the UK’s leading crop production and grain marketing business, committed to delivering sustainable solutions for farming. As the sector evolves, access to the right solutions and expertise has never been more important. Frontier supports the industry with a diverse but unified range of services and advice covering everything from soil health to data interpretation.
Opportunities are being created through collaboration. By connecting farmers to the food, drink and feed manufacturers they work with, Frontier is helping to build thriving and rewarding supply chains.
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