As a Red Tractor Assured Farmer you get…
Red Tractor Assurance sets out to maintain, develop and promote integrated Assurance standards for the benefit of its assured members within the whole food industry. It sets standards for farms as well as other critical links in the food supply chain both pre- and post-farm. Red Tractor Assurance works across the whole food supply chain from farm, transport, processing and packing.
Single scheme accepted by major buyers – you have the flexibility to supply different customers without need for separate inspections. Maximises market opportunities - you can do business with all the buyers major supermarket brands, who buy farm assured products only. Health check for farm business – allows you to check you meet relevant legal requirements. Less likelihood of government inspections – you are considered lower risk for some inspections.
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NATIONAL FARMER
“Eleven and a half million people shop in Morrisons stores every week. Red Tractor Farm Assurance helps us deliver a great message to our customers about the broad range of production standards, including animal welfare, they can expect from assured British farmers.” David Evans, Head of Agriculture, Morrisons
“We are British agriculture’s biggest customer and we’re proud of all the hard working farmers who ensure high levels of animal welfare, food safety and good environmental practice are maintained. We will continue to support the Red Tractor scheme and recognise the important part it plays in the delivery of quality British produce.” Angela Hughes, Technical Director of Food, Tesco
If you are always farming and too busy to stay on track of legislation and to keep lots of records. Red Tractor Assured Farmers benefit from a range of tools and services to help make the assurance process easier and less time consuming for you. Quick guide - a summary of how the scheme works, the standards and common issues found during assessments. An alternative to the manual to save you time Blank record forms - of all the records you have to keep so you don’t have to draw them up yourself Codes of practice and publications - all together and available electronically for free to save you searching for them Scheme manual - a reference document so you know the rules and detail of standards including thorough guidance on how to meet them Pre-visit checklist - both a simple list and an on-line selfassessment system highlighting what an assessor will look for to help you prepare Crop Assurance Inspectors - will identify and confirm that your adviser / agronomist is a member of the BASIS Professional Register to ensure the advice you are getting is accurate, up-to-date and relevant to your crops and your business.
NATIONAL FARMER
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“At Asda we place a very strong emphasis on food safety at every point in the supply chain and from field to fork the stringent standards put in place under farm assurance help us guarantee the safety and integrity of the food we put on our shelves. That’s why we’ve always supported the Red Tractor farm assurance scheme which helps us give our customers the reassurance that our supplier farmers are operating to the very highest standards in everything they do.” Pearce Hughes, Agricultural Development Manager, Asda
Red Tractor Assured Farmers receive real benefits, that include: Single assessment visit for mixed farms – saving you time and avoiding duplication Access to RTA scheme support Choice of Certification Body – you are free to shop around and get the most competitive price Integrated IPPC inspections - saving you money, improving biosecurity and reducing the number of inspections (Pigs and Poultry) Access to export markets - you can supply overseas buyers who demand assurance in some sectors (Fresh Produce) BASIS points – for completing a farm assurance audit (Fresh Produce and Crops and Sugar Beet) Free access to LIAISON - pesticides approval database (Fresh Produce) Access to biofuels market – for your cereals, oilseeds and sugarbeet without additional inspections – RED (Crops)
Doing a better job for farmers In 2012 we conducted a survey to find out what you thought of Red Tractor. As part of our commitment to delivering improvements we have implemented an e-newsletter for Red Tractor members to coincide with the introduction of a consumer-focused e-newsletter. Of course, as consumers too, farmers can also sign up for the consumer newsletter. In fact, 100 Big Feastival tickets are available to be won by anybody who signs up before the 16th August. Every month the newsletter will be full of exclusive offers and competitions from Red Tractor licensees, retailers and industry partners so why not ask your friends and family to sign up for more chances to win. If you would like to feature in the newsletter as a Red Tractor Farmer case study please email jessica.sloss@redtractor.org.uk. You can sign up for the consumer e-newsletter here: http://bit.ly/18opavL
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NATIONAL FARMER
In May we launched ‘Trust the Tractor’ starting with the rollout of the nationwide banner campaign to urge consumers to look for the Red Tractor. In July we appointed Alex James as our ‘Trust the Tractor’ Ambassador who will encourage consumers to look for the Red Tractor logo on pack. During Red Tractor Week 2013 (16-22 September) Alex will participate in Red Tractor’s consumer activity which will ask retailer, branded and foodservice partners to support the week through in-store and in-outlet activity. The activity will also be supported by consumer activity undertaken by other industry stakeholders including Bpex, Eblex, DairyCo and the NFU., not to mention the fact that he is hosting the Big Feastival on his farm in Oxfordshire. Alex says: “Now, more than ever, we want assurance that the food we are buying for our families comes from a reliable and responsible source. The Red Tractor logo gives assurances that a product meets responsible production standards and is traceable back to independently inspected farms.”
We are also asking consumers to sign up to be Red Tractor recruits – to work with us in encouraging the UK to support responsible and traceable British farming, whether by attending Red Tractor events or hosting one themselves, such as a Red Tractor dinner party or cake sale. All recruits will be invited to join us down on Alex James’ farm for a barbeque celebrating Red Tractor food and farming. Richard Cattell, Red Tractor Head of Communications & Marketing said: “The support from the industry for our Trust The Tractor campaign has been overwhelming. Shoppers want to know the standards their food has been produced to and the origin of the food they are eating and serving to their families. We are delighted to be working with Alex James in our effort to communicate to consumer that food carrying the Red Tractor logo meets responsible production standards and is traceable back to independently inspected Red Tractor Assured farms”
Study shows farm assured stock give higher returns for producers
F
arm assured beef cattle fetched on average over 9p per kilo more at market than nonassured stock last year, according to latest figures. The study by EBLEX also shows that lambs returned between 3p and 5p per kilo more if they were part of a farm assurance scheme than those animals that weren’t. The highest difference between assured and non-assured stock was among over 30-month steers, at CLICK 12.5p/kg, with almost 79 per cent of HERE H ERE cattle sold in England in 2012 being farm assured.
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NATIONAL FARMER
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Red Tractor launched its Trust the Tractor campaign back in May this year with a nationwide rollout of Trust the Tractor banners, which were placed around the country in highly visible locations for all to see. Following this, Alex James, Blur bassist and cheese maker was announced as the Red Tractor Ambassador, highlighting to consumers why they should look for the Red Tractor logo on their food when shopping and dining out. Red Tractor launched a digital campaign to encourage shoppers to support Red Tractor and sign up to a monthly e-letter filled with offers and promotions from Red Tractor licensees. At the same time we offered consumers the chance to win tickets to the Big Feastival, a food and music festival hosted by Jamie Oliver and Alex James on Alex’s farm. This campaign generated huge interest in Red Tractor with over 8,000 people signing up and 25 families winning tickets to the festival.
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NATIONAL FARMER
The Big Feastival 31st Aug & 1st Sept was a huge success with an estimated 16,000 people attending per day. Red Tractor had cooking demo’s including turkey meatballs with gnocchi, Peruvian style pork, Masala lamb burgers and flat-iron steak with tasty samples for everyone afterwards. There was also photobooth where passers-by could have their family photo taken having the photo printed while they waited to take away as a memento. The huge Massey Ferguson tractor also attracted a lot of attention, especially when Elle and the Pocket Belles, a vintage swing girl group sang a little ditty in front of it, adorned in Trust the Tractor stickers! A photo opportunity with Alex James and Adam Henson followed by a Q&A session, really rounded off the day on Saturday, perfectly timed before Rizzle Kicks hit the stage. Red Tractor Week is fast approaching (16th – 22nd Sept), and work is well underway to make it a great success. Starting with an appearance by Alex James on Sunday Brunch on 15th September the week will be full of Red Tractor activity. On the 16th Alex will do national and regional radio interviews. Each day a different sector will be highlighted through social media and the Red Tractor website. Through farmer case studies, recipes, promotion of licensees and farming facts Red Tractor will be showing the consumer just how far the logo reaches – all the way from farm to fork. On top of this, retailers will be showcasing Red Tractor produce throughout the week with shelf-talkers, banners, in store radio and Red Tractor offers. There will also be an Instagram competition, launched through the week asking consumers to use their imagination to capture the Red Tractor logo. On top of all of this, Red Tractor are calling for consumers to become Red Tractor Recruits and to promote Red Tractor in their local communities for the chance of winning an invitation from Alex James to a bonfire at his farm in February. We will also be launching a new ‘Eating Out’ application on the website; a mapping tool which helps people find out where they can eat Red Tractor assured produce whilst dining out.
If you would like to help promote the Trust the Tractor campaign by placing a banner on your farm, please email industrycommunications@redtractor.org.uk
NATIONAL FARMER
email: editorial@nationalfarmer.net