Supermarket giant Waitrose has found itself in hot water with shoppers over ‘disgraceful’ food bank messages being placed around stores. Waitrose is known by many as one of the more ‘posh’ supermarkets, although in recent months, has impressed people with the price of its own-brand products.
In keeping with the cost of living crisis, Waitrose is encouraging shoppers to donate items to food banks where possible. The same is being done in supermarkets like Aldi, Morrisons, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, ASDA and Lidl.
However, shoppers have taken issue with Waitrose after they spotted food bank messages being placed under products on shelves. Images of the signs have now been shared across media, and action groups are getting involved.
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The Alchemic Kitchen, which is an environmental campaign group that tackles food waste, accused Waitrose of being ignorant to the realities of people having to access food banks adding: “normalising this helps no one.” The group tweeted: “It’s not the product we have a problem with, veg stock is useful & this is a ‘good’ one but ‘perfect’ & ‘food banks’ do not go together, any more than politicians, royalty et al having a photo call at one does. Words & deeds matter.”
Other Twitter users agreed with the Alchemic Kitchen’s stance with one Twitter user @beverlymcfarl14 noting that the message the supermarket was sending was: “OK for poor people, but not good enough for Waitrose customers.”
Another user @moogyboobles said: “Oh just lovely. Normalising the failure of the government, that food banks are now part of everyday language. When my children were babies I had never heard of a food bank.”
The original post highlighting the “perfect for the foodbank” label came from food poverty campaigner Jane Middleton. She said: “Is this Waitrose’s most middle-class moment ever? Seriously, @waitrose, if you insist on promoting food products in this way, you could at least check the list at the food bank donation point. I can guarantee you vegetable bouillon has never and will never be on it.”
Jane added: “‘Perfect’ really upset me. Do they think food banks are some kind of cookery club?” She added: “There’s nothing perfect about the foodbank system and a tub of bouillon (or anything else) won’t change that.”
Several people did defend Waitrose saying the supermarket’s “intention” was in the right place but it was its execution that “was off”. One user @upthewoodenhill said: “Although the tone is off, these reminders for shoppers whilst shopping are important. So regularly the foodbank area is next to the exit as a complete afterthought. Should be at the entrance!”
@Resnam said: “This boullion can make the left over meat from a dinner into a warming and nutritious soup. That would use up the bits otherwise destined for the bin.” @KarinKMacDee said: “I don’t think Waitrose should use this labelling at all. However, there’s nothing wrong with giving good quality products to food banks. More nutritious food would obviously be more useful but a few less essential items in the mix is often appreciated.”
Another @teaching_MrsE said: “I think it’s the wording. I like the idea of giving the shopper an idea of what the food bank is short of so they don’t end up with 100 bags of pasta, but the way it’s done here is tone-deaf.” Waitrose has defended the “Perfect for the Foodbank” promotion describing it as helping a “vital” cause.
A Waitrose spokesperson said: “While no one should have to use a food bank, they provide a vital service and we’re suggesting items our customers could donate to the collection points we have in our shops, should they wish.”
Waitrose told Mirror Money that it wanted “to make a difference” and alongside its foodbank collection points. It also makes an annual donation of over £200,000 to the food bank charity Trussel Trust and has donated more than 14million meals through the charity FareShare’s food distribution scheme.
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