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Wal-Mart's Asda considers shelving far-flung foods

01 Mar 2007 16:20:34 GMT
Source: Reuters

LONDON, March 1 (Reuters) - Asparagus from Peru and mange tout from New Zealand may disappear from British supermarket shelves as consumers weigh their environmental cost, the head of one of Britain's biggest supermarket chains said on Thursday.

Asda Chief Executive Any Bond, who heads up the British grocer of retail leader Wal-Mart Stores Inc. <WMT.N>, also said he had seen sales rise slightly in the past two weeks since the company began to cut packaging because of its impact on the environment.

"I don't think retailers will make a conscious decision at a point in time to stop listing products. What will happen is consumers will make a choice that they don't want to buy it and ultimately it will disappear off the shelves," Bond told reporters.

Those items most at risk from a growing concern among shoppers about the distance food is transported are fruit and vegetables grown in places far flung from Britain.

"It is dangerous to give examples but if you want examples here are two: asparagus from Peru, mange tout from New Zealand," Bond said on the margins of a Retail Week conference.

Britain's supermarkets are grappling with mounting consumer concern about the environment and the role big retailers may play in its protection and harm.

To prove their green colours, top retailers Tesco <TSCO.L>, Asda, J. Sainsbury <SBRY.L> and Marks and Spencer <MKS.L> have pledged to build more carbon efficient stores and cut packaging -- moves they say also help to reduce operating costs.

Those stores agreed on Wednesday to cut the environmental impact of plastic bags by a quarter by the end of next year, reducing emissions of the main greenhouse gas carbon dioxide equal to taking 18,000 cards off the road.

Asda began last month a trial also limiting its packaging on fruit and vegetables to see whether consumers were happy buying cucumbers and broccoli not wrapped in plastic.

"We're only two weeks in but I think sales are slightly up, certainly not in decline, so it's an interesting first step," Bond said.

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Last updated:Thu Mar 1 16:21:06 2007