ASDA - my response to your response

My sincere thanks to Julian Walker-Palin who heads up Corporate Policy on Sustainability for ASDA for responding to my twitter message advertising my blog post;

Anyway, now I want to respond, because some of Julian's comments are nothing short of ridiculous.

Julian said; "Without packaging we would have food rotting in the fields or in supply networks, as can be seen every day in countries like India."

My response; As I worked for a fruit and veg shop chain in West Yorkshire for some years, I really do disagree with this.  Fruit and vegetables do not need packaging, it assists but it is not essential.  I am astounded he is scaremongering with comments about food rotting in fields or in supply networks.  Refrigeration often prevents any food rotting and the shorter time from field to shop stops it.

Perhaps if ASDA and other supermarket giants stopped shipping seasonal food from abroad and bought British it would also make a massive impact.

I do agree that ASDA's packaging is much more clearly marked about it's green credentials.

I also agree that more Councils need to embark on providing a wider range of recycling facilities.

However, it still does not detract from the fact that much of the packaging used on prepared vegetables in plastic is not currently recycled - that is ASDA's choice of packaging, not the council's fault.

And it still does not change my mind that if more seasonal fruit and vegetables was bought from within the UK, air miles would be down, road miles may increase but we should be buying more local food.

I think supermarkets have killed off many small shops and parades, but that will never stop us using them, but as this exchange has shown, the giants such as ASDA don't take too kindly to criticism and more folks need to do like me and be vocal and complain and then make them sit up and listen.