M&S Launches “Plan A for Farming”

M&S Launches “Plan A for Farming” and Calls on Government to Set National Food Security Target

• At a challenging moment for UK farming, M&S backs British farmers by redoubling its commitment to sourcing British and strengthening its partnership with 10,000 British Farms 
• M&S amplifies farmers call for Government to step up agricultural support as part of the national Food Strategy, asking for a legally binding target to increase the proportion of food eaten in Britain that’s grown or reared in Britain.

Launching today “Plan A for Farming” sets out M&S’s ambition to create a sustainable British farming industry, supporting farmers to deliver exceptional quality food:

• M&S reaffirms its commitment to sourcing 100% British across key products such as Beef, Chicken, Pork and Milk.
• Support for British produce farmers to extend growing seasons so customers can buy British for longer. 
• £14m investment in sustainable farming and innovation; a new £7m invested over next five years, including new ‘Farming for the Future’ programme, building on £7m investment already provided.
• Funding insight and advice for farmers to implement regenerative practices, improve resilience, reduce carbon footprints and deliver the best British food.
• New commitment that, by 2030, 100% of M&S British products will come from farms using regenerative practices. 
• New industry leading standards for beef and milk, developed in partnership with farmers.

M&S is stepping up support for British farmers facing growing challenges, from climate change and biodiversity loss to economic pressures. Alongside outlining its own plans for the sector, M&S is supporting its farmers’ calls for Government action. Specifically, a clear and concrete target to increase the proportion of food eaten in Britain that is UK-grown and reared to galvanise action. Like targets around net zero, this could help tilt the balance in farmers’ favour.

M&S is also calling for a range of actions in the Government’s Food Strategy to support farmers, including:

• Replacing complex government grants with simpler incentives and allowances.          
• Reflecting our high national standards in both the food we import and the trade deals that we strike with other countries.      
• Introducing apprenticeships and training schemes where businesses, schools, colleges, and universities show young people the opportunities in farming and provide them with the skills and experience to succeed.

“British farming is the backbone of our food industry and the foundation of M&S Food,” said Alex Freudmann, Managing Director of M&S Food. “British food is the best in the world and at M&S, we’ve invested millions to support our farmers who produce it. But the future of British agriculture can’t rest on industry alone. That’s why we’re backing our farmers in their call for government to step up – starting with a clear, legally binding target to increase the proportion of food eaten in Britain that is grown here. It’s time to turn warm words into action.”

Today, M&S launches ‘Plan A For Farming’, a strategy running to 2030 focused on British sourcing, sustainability, high standards, and resilience. The goal is to help farmers feel confident about the future, grow their businesses, and invest, ensuring M&S can continue delivering quality food to millions of families across the UK.
M&S is backing Britain as it builds on its long-standing and industry-leading commitment to British farming:

• The M&S Select Farm programme, launched 30 years ago, is a leading initiative setting the farming standards that deliver the quality customers expect, from farmers we know and trust. M&S has almost 10,000 Select Farms and commits to continue sourcing 100% of its beef, chicken, salmon, pork, whole eggs, and milk from British farmers. 
• Every Christmas Turkey on M&S shelves is British and next Easter M&S will be one of the only retailers to sell only British Lamb – only possible through working closely with select farms. 
• M&S is supporting UK produce farmers with investment and innovation to extend growing seasons so that British farmers can produce for longer and M&S customers can buy British for longer – examples include British asparagus, broccoli, and strawberries. 
• M&S has invested more than £7m over the last decade in supporting farmers with agricultural innovation and a further £7m is available over the next five years. 
   

M&S will further its commitment to sustainable agriculture with a commitment that by 2030, 100% of its British products will be sourced from farms using regenerative practices, delivered through: 

• Farming for the Future: A five-year initiative bringing together 200 farmers and growers across the UK to tackle sustainability at farm level in a truly holistic way. Through strategic partnerships with Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF), Soil Association Exchange (SAX), and Sustainable Soils Management (SSM), M&S is providing 50 farms across the country with a fully funded package of environmental monitoring, expert advice, and practical support. Farmers will receive personalised soil, biodiversity, and carbon assessments, as well as firsthand training and digital tools. This practical support and insight will help better look after soils, protect nature, and reduce the farm’s carbon footprint to improve resilience while delivering the best quality British food. 150 farmers supported through soil courses later in the year.

As part of “Plan A for Farming” M&S is building on its industry leading farming standards over the next five years, including the following, that launch today:

• Angus Gold Standard: A leading integrated Aberdeen Angus beef standard, using a science-led Angus breeding programme, which guarantees exceptional eating quality and high welfare. Launched across two depots last week with Angus Gold steaks available in 90 stores and scaling to cover the total M&S Aberdeen Angus supply by 2028. 
• Enhanced Milk Pledge: Building on M&S’ 25-year commitment to fair pricing for British dairy farmers in its milk pool, the enhanced Milk Pledge collaborates with farmers to deliver leading animal welfare requirements, regenerative farming practices and supports farms with HR and community engagement – including real-time monitoring of the health and wellbeing of the animals via AI. 
  These new standards support M&S’ approach to dedicated farming supply chains, collaborating with the best farmers supported with fair pricing and long-term contracts, so that they can deliver M&S quality, welfare, and environmental standards. These currently operate across Milk, Aberdeen Angus Gold, Oakham Gold, Caledonian Gold Salmon and Heritage Gold Pork and M&S will expand this over the next five years. 

FURTHER DETAIL:

Today’s Launches:

The full “Plan A for Farming” strategy covers four areas, with ambitions for 2030:

1. Backing British Farming – reaffirming the commitment to sourcing 100% British on key proteins like Beef, Chicken, Pork, and Eggs, whether fresh or ingredient, plus investing to extend the season of key British produce with our growers.
2. Sustainability at the heart of Farming – All British products available on shelves will come from farms using regenerative practices. 
3. Farming Standards you can Trust – continuing to collaborate on and support farmers to deliver industry-leading M&S animal welfare, quality, and farming standards by 2030.
4. Investing in People, Growing the Future – M&S will support farmers in key supply chains over the long-term, including fair pricing and contracts that give farmers confidence for the future. 

The full Plan A for Farming can be found here.

• £7m additional investment: £4.5 million over the next five years in ongoing investment and collaboration with farmers, on top of the cost of goods or cost of production. An additional £2.5 million available in grants over five years through the Plan A Accelerator Fund to support innovation projects tackling agricultural emissions. Current projects include extending the season of British Tenderstem broccoli, precision pollination on strawberries, net zero wheat, and methane tracking in cattle. 
• Farming for the Future: Building on the success of the M&S Farming with Nature programme and launching today, this five-year initiative brings together 200 farmers and growers across the UK to tackle sustainability at farm level in a truly holistic way. Through strategic partnerships with Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF), Soil Association Exchange (SAX), and Sustainable Soils Management (SSM), M&S is providing 50 farms across the country with a fully funded package of environmental monitoring, expert advice, and practical support. Farmers will receive personalised soil, biodiversity, and carbon assessments, as well as firsthand training and digital tools to evaluate, monitor and implement regenerative practices, such as planting cover crops and herbal leys, minimum or no tilling and planting trees or hedgerows. This practical support and insight will help better look after soils, protect nature, and reduce the farm’s carbon footprint to improve resilience while delivering the best quality British food. An additional 150 farmers supported through SSM’s Healthy Soils Connected Course from October. 
• Angus Gold Standard: A leading integrated Aberdeen Angus beef standard, developed in partnership with farmers using a science-led Angus breeding programme, which guarantees exceptional eating quality and high welfare. Launched across two depots last week with Angus Gold steaks available in 90 stores and scaling to cover the total M&S Aberdeen Angus supply by 2028. 
  • BETTER FOR WELFARE: Sourced from and grazed on British family farms, which are independently assessed by experts, M&S Aberdeen Angus cattle are cared for throughout their lives by farmers we know and trust who follow best practice on rearing and feeding and M&S can monitor and evaluate each animal at any time. 
  • BETTER FOR CARBON: With calves born to Dairy cows, this integrated model has an almost 40% lower carbon footprint vs standard beef. 
  • BETTER FOR TASTE: By selecting the best Aberdeen Angus genetics, exclusively for M&S, Angus Gold steaks include a ‘Tender Guarantee’ on pack proving the improved quality and marbling to customers.
  • BETTER FOR FARMERS: Working with a much smaller number of farmers has allowed M&S to introduce a lifetime contract model, with M&S Aberdeen Angus Cattle covered by a direct contract with M&S. This unique offer in the Beef industry, means long-term, cost of production contracts, giving farmers the confidence to invest and innovate at every stage of the supply chain.
     

Enhanced Milk Pledge: Building on M&S’ 25-year commitment to fair pricing for British dairy farmers in its milk pool, the enhanced Milk Pledge collaborates with farmers to deliver leading animal welfare requirements, regenerative farming practices and supports farms with HR and community engagement. The new standard introduces AI tools for real-time monitoring of the health and wellbeing of the animals and assesses farms on nature-friendly farming practices. Rolling out now, the new standard covers all core fresh British Skimmed, Semi-Skimmed and Whole milk sold in Foodhalls and M&S Cafes. 

• BETTER FOR WELFARE: The M&S Milk Pool is made up of 40 British family farms, which care for the cows that produce M&S fresh milk. The new standard maintains leading animal welfare requirements such as pasture-grazing and veterinary plans for each animal and now introduces AI tools for real-time monitoring of the health and wellbeing of the animals. 
• BETTER FOR NATURE: Farms are now assessed on established regenerative actions such as improving soil health, biodiversity and reducing carbon impact.
• BETTER FOR FARMERS: The pioneering M&S Milk Pool was built on M&S’ pledge to pay dairy farmers a fair price 25 years ago, today the pool is made up of 40 farmers who are paid via a cost-of-production plus model, with a back-to-back contract agreement with the processor, creating the conditions for farmers to invest and drive innovation. For the first time, M&S is supporting farmers with HR advice and wellbeing support for staff, as well as engaging with the local community.

M&S Has Always Backed British Farming

M&S is backing Britain as it builds on its long-standing,  industry-leading commitment to British farming:

• The M&S Select Farm programme, launched 30 years ago, is a leading initiative setting the farming standards which delivers the quality customers expect from farmers we know and trust. M&S has almost 10,000 Select Farms and commits to continue sourcing 100% of its beef, chicken, salmon, pork, whole eggs, and milk from British farmers. 
• Every Turkey on M&S shelves at Christmas is British and next Easter M&S will be one of the only retailers to sell 100% British Lamb – only by working closely with select farms is this possible. 
• M&S is supporting UK produce farmers with investment and innovation to extend growing seasons so that British farmers can produce for longer and M&S customers can buy British for longer – examples include British asparagus, broccoli, and strawberries. 
• This year M&S saw a record buy of British strawberries, 20% more than summer 2024, enabling farmers to invest in second planting. That’s 6,000 tonnes of berries, worth £30m. One of the projects supported through the Plan A Accelerator Fund saw strawberry farmers monitor pollinator activity using AI technology, with one M&S Red Diamond Strawberry grower delivering 25% more berries vs conventional methods, helping M&S meet customer demand. 
• M&S has invested more than £7m over the last decade in supporting farmers with agricultural innovation and a further £7m is available over the next five years. Examples include the (announced today) trial of flooring in the M&S funded upgraded milking parlour, on one of the M&S Milk Pool farms, a trial measuring methane from Aberdeen Angus cows to support breeding a lower emission cow and last year a trial using the latest technology to farm a field of parsnips, delivering more, higher quality veg with a reduced carbon footprint.