Look for the Red Tractor dirty truth, Tesco
It’s time to up your standards. Tell Tesco to call out Red Tractor, and pave the way for robust environmental standards on their products.
To: Tesco
From: [your name]
I am a regular customer of Tesco. I am deeply concerned that your shelves are full of products bearing the Red Tractor label as a mark of environmental protection.
The Red Tractor assurance scheme has been found to mislead the public:
- Environment Agency (EA) data from between 2020-2025 reveals that almost 60% of inspections of Red Tractor farms identified a breach of environmental regulations.
- The Advertising Standards Authority ruled on 15 October 2025 that Red Tractor’s advertising misled the public about its environmental standards and exaggerated the benefits of Red Tractor endorsement.
This means customers like me have been misled into believing we were buying food “farmed with care” when, in reality, much of it comes from Red Tractor assured farms that are breaching environmental regulations.
You state on your website that “The Red Tractor standards ensure that the production (our meat, dairy, fruit and vegetable) products does not have an adverse impact on the environment”. However, the ASA’s ruling and the EA’s data undermines this statement. By continuing to stock products with this label, Tesco’s is helping to prop up a scheme that greenwashes environmental outcomes.
I urge you to:
- Publicly acknowledge the ASA findings on the Red Tractor scheme and reassure customers that you are leading the industry to set and uphold environmental commitments in your supply chains.
- Explain how you will ensure your products meet high environmental standards going forward.
I want to shop at a supermarket I can trust. Right now, the Red Tractor label undermines that trust. Please act swiftly otherwise I will consider shopping elsewhere.
I look forward to your response.
