Welcome to the July-August issue of Grocery Trader. The founder of the UK’s leading vape distributor has described the Government’s proposed plans to impose packaging and display limits on vapes as “disproportionate”, warning that they could prevent smokers from giving up tobacco. Chris Kelly, founder of Phoenix 2 Retail, says the plans risk losing sight of the products’ effectiveness as a tool which can be used to help smokers quit by treating them in the same way as tobacco.
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Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief have announced that they are investing over £8m of donations raised through their partnership into complementing the Government’s Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme. With over 2 million children living in food insecure households in the UK, and many missing out on Government funded holiday provision due to continued strict eligibility thresholds, school holidays create a sharp gap where families struggle to provide enough nutritious food for their children, without the lifeline of free school meals provided during term time.
Community energy leader, Younity, is throwing its weight behind Community Energy Fortnight and Co-op Fortnight 2026, as it continues its work to put community energy at the heart of sustainable power in the UK. Since 2019, Younity, the award-winning joint venture between OurCoop and Octopus Energy that helps communities turn grassroots renewable energy projects into a reality, has been supporting green community energy generation through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), grant and loan funding, volunteer management and project guidance.
To celebrate the live-action reimagining of their 2002 animated classic Disney Lilo & Stitch, Radnor Fruits has launched three character-inspired flavoured drinks. The specially branded 200ml Tetra Paks feature a design of the Disney Stitch character from the film and in flavours which include Apple, Forest Fruits and Orange. Kirthi Pearala, Head of Grocery Retail for Radnor Hills tells Grocery Trader more about the collaboration and about the trends that are driving the bottled water sector.
Retail crime has become one of the defining operational pressures facing British companies, including supermarkets and smaller retailers. According to the British Retail Consortium, theft cost UK retailers more than £2.2 billion in 2024, while businesses spent a further £1.8 billion on preventative measures. Yet despite higher spending on CCTV, alarms, and security personnel, many businesses still feel exposed, writes Alex Booth, Managing Director, AURA UK.
Establishing whether customers are old enough to buy a certain product has long been one of the most challenging elements of working in a grocery store. Staff rarely get much in the way of training as to the best way of approaching this, and it’s a situation that is only going to get more complex. With ever-increasing compliance requirements – more product categories, more age thresholds, more regulatory pressure – how can grocery stores verify age without impacting the customer experience and without compromising privacy, writes Nicolas Sierro, Product Manager, Privately SA.
Enjoy reading the issue.
George Simpson
Group Editor
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