News Archive

Red Tractor beef and lamb is to sponsor a new series of TV competition Britain’s Best Dish.

Northern Irish farmers were publicly recognised in a photocall with British food fan Janet Street-Porter in London last week to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Scheme as part of Red Tractor Week

Andrew Gallerwood, a teacher at Ryde Junior School, Isle of Wight got a real life lesson in the origin of food when a Red Tractor Farm trip resulted in him delivering a calf.

Harmonisation Press Release

Since 2006 we have permitted licensees and their customers to use the Red Tractor logo on more complex foods to where only the ‘Principal Ingredients’* are assured.

Assured Food Standards has now adopted an independent role in driving Red Tractor promotions in line with a five-year business plan drafted by the AFS ownership body in 2003 (NFU, UFU, MLC, Dairy UK and BRC with FDF and DEFRA).

The new Red Tractor promotional activity has generated an increased demand from licensees and more new licence applications. The Red Tractor logos (old and new) can only be used on food packaging under a strictly controlled licence issued by AFS.

To remove any ambiguity once and for all, the flag of origin has been added to the new Red Tractor logo, indicating the provenance of the food in the pack. Furthermore, most Red Tractor packs will carry an additional statement of origin on the label as required by AFS. Retailers and their customers have welcomed this move.

Whilst operating in the European single market, the industry-owned Red Tractor cannot be used to distort EU trade. This means that, even though the Red Tractor has never legitimately appeared on imported food, the scheme cannot be promoted as exclusively British.

In response to a growing demand from consumers and food chain partners, AFS is cautiously exploring new licence categories and supply chain opportunities. For the last five years the Red Tractor logo has only been licensed for primary products in the retail environment. With the exception of Silver Spoon and some dairy brands, the logo has been used predominantly on supermarket own-label products.

Tesco and Budgens have been the first retailers to unveil their plans for Red Tractor campaigns this summer. AFS has a very small budget for consumer promotions and communication. It relies heavily on Red Tractor stakeholders to provide the vehicle for mainstream promotions. Tesco has launched a nationwide in-store promotion with hanging banners, Tesco-TV ads and direct mailings to clubcard holders.

Again, AFS is urging industry partners to use this year's show season to promote the new Red Tractor proposition to as many people as possible. For it's part, AFS will be hosting a Red Tractor stand in the food hall at this year's Royal Show from 3-7 July. The eye-catching display will be aimed predominantly at consumers but industry partners are invited to visit the stand and help to communicate the role of the Red Tractor alliance.

With tens of thousands of producers supplying hundreds of processors and packers, how do we ensure the Red Tractor only appears on food that meets its standards?

Assured Food Standards (AFS) has adopted a Memorandum of Understanding with LACORS, the co-ordinating body for local authority regulators.

Red Tractor crops and horticulture assurance schemes have developed some practical solutions to control crop-spray use and minimise residues. The provocative subject of pesticide residues frequently makes the headlines, so the Red Tractor plays a vital role in reassuring consumers and promoting best practice.

For the first time, the Red Tractor will have an influential position at this year’s BBC Good Food Show at Birmingham’s NEC. As Europe’s largest food and drink show, the 5-day event attracts over 130,000 visitors to taste, buy and learn about food.

Research shows that values such as traceability, provenance and assurance are increasingly important to British consumers. In response, local convenience store group Budgens has placed the Red Tractor at the centre of its autumn campaign.

Assured Food Standards has developed a new Red Tractor licence category for restaurant chains and food service outlets. This move will hugely extend the scope of Red Tractor assurance, and reveal the logo to a much wider audience.

Country Life has become the first Red Tractor butter. The new logo features on all Butter and Spreadable packs as part of Dairy Crest’s relaunch of the familiar brand.

Assured Food Standards marked a major milestone this month with the announcement that the estimated retail value of Red Tractor food has reached the £5 billion mark.

The new Red Tractor logo was unveiled to the public this summer at a series of special events and promotions across the UK.

The BBC Good Food Show opened in style on 24 November when celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson arrived at the NEC behind the wheel of a full size Massey Ferguson tractor, emblazoned with the Red Tractor food logo.

Today the Prime Minister launched the nation’s first official Red Tractor Day, posing for TV crews and photographers by a full size red tractor in Downing Street on the eve of the event.

Since the transport of livestock plays a pivotal role in the beef and lamb supply chain ABM has produced and distributed a leaflet outlining transport assurance and how it works. The leaflet has been distributed to all livestock markets and assured abattoirs in England and Wales. Copies of are available at www.abm.org.uk or by calling ABM on tel. 01908 844315.

Dairy farmers have welcomed the update to the National Dairy Farm Assured Scheme (NDFAS), enabling cattle from the dairy herd to enter the beef market as assured. The new standards, announced by Assured Food Standards in January in response to the ending of the Over Thirty Months Scheme, provide a single inspection to cover the certification of both milk and beef from the dairy herd.

Earlier this year, Assured Food Standards announced a positive new development regarding the labelling of assured British chicken. In view of recent efforts to simplify and strengthen the Red Tractor assurance mark, AFS joined forces with British Chicken Marketing to back a new campaign for Great British Chicken

In these days of heightened awareness of terrorism, the security services are increasingly interested in the security of fertiliser stored on UK farms. Last year, all producers were sent a copy of a leaflet called Security of Fertiliser Storage on Farms which was produced in conjunction with the farming unions, AIC and National Counter Terrorism Security Office.

On 20 April the Prime Minister launched the nation’s first official Red Tractor Day, posing for TV crews and photographers by a full size Massey Ferguson ‘red’ tractor outside No 10 – the very first tractor in Downing Street.

Assured British Meat (ABM) has reported a swift uptake of its new online tracker facility for assured English beef and lamb. Many abattoirs and markets have already signed up for the new service, making it quicker and easier to verify the assurance status of Red Tractor beef and lamb producers in England.

Newly elected NFU president, Peter Kendall has wasted no time in pledging his full support for Red Tractor assurance. As part of a wider campaign that promotes the importance of British food he has urged farmers to consider Red Tractor schemes as a valuable way of differentiating their products.

The ownership and operation of farm assurance in the dairy sector is to be transferred from the National Dairy Farm Assured Scheme (NDFAS) to Assured Food Standards (AFS). This groundbreaking development will further strengthen Red Tractor by improving co-ordination in marketing initiatives, spreading of overhead costs and accelerating the harmonisation of standards & inspections.

Assured Food Standards and the National Farmers’ Union have produced a booklet on the Red Tractor Scheme in the public procurement sector.

Building on last years success, Red Tractor will be exhibiting at this years BBC Good Food Show in Birmingham with BPEX, NABIM/HGCA, MDC, the British Carrot Growers Association and the Yes Peas Campaign.

January 2007 saw a big step forward in co-operation with a government agency to reduce the burden of inspection on assured farmers. Food businesses along the supply chain have had to comply with General Food Hygiene Regulations for more than a century, but until now the regulations have never applied to food production before the farm gate. EU regulation 852/2004 has changed all that, and farmers and growers also fall within the regulations that require producers to take all reasonable steps to keep food free from contamination that could pose a threat to the health of anyone that eats it.

For two years AFS has been tracking an EU study of product certification schemes in an integrated food chain which came to some sort of conclusion at a conference in Brussels in early February. The project was originally stimulated by Dutch MEP following a speech in the European Parliament and this was taken up by DG Agriculture who commissioned work to be led by an EU research centre in Seville, Spain.

The BBC Good Food Show 2006 received over 130,000 visitors and the Red Tractor and partners where there to greet them.

The Red Tractor scheme is continuing to grow and can now be found on over £5.3 billion of food every year. It operates not only in the retail sector but also in the commercial food service sector and not to mention on an ever growing list of branded food.

The great majority of Red Tractor labelled food packs contain only primary products such as cuts of meat, milk and fruit and vegetables. And we have always worked on the principle that the logo gives a message that all the food in the pack meets Red Tractor standards.

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A new opportunity has arisen for Red Tractor in the public sector. Defra has included the scheme as a buying requirement in the new Public Sector Food Procurement Initiative (PSFPI) Buying Toolkit after recognising the rigorous level of the production standards of the scheme.

Following the success of Red Tractor Day this years’ event will take place over a week from 9-15 July. Activities will include a press launch with the Red Tractor ambassador, a survey on what people are eating, stories for consumer and trade press including stunts for regional press and more including in-store promotion.

Download the latest copy of the newsletter.

Download the latest copy of the newsletter

Download the latest copy of the newsletter.

Download the latest copy of the newsletter.

Red Tractor is taking to the road again this year through the NFU Food and Farming Road Show.

Massey Ferguson will continue to show their support for the Red Tractor Scheme with a number of activities planned to promote the values of the Red Tractor Scheme during the coming months.

In a recent survey by the Trading Standards Institute it was found that 100% of Trading Standards Officers believe that the Memorandum of Understanding between Local Authorities Co-ordinator on Regulatory Services (LACORS) and Assured Food Standards (AFS) is a positive step towards a modern approach to enforcing the new legislation on animal welfare and food safety.

Assured British Meat (ABM) has recently announced a significant expansion of it's beef and lamb assurance chain with over 130 livestock markets and collection centres now assured together with an additional 35 small and medium sized processing companies.

Red Tractor has developed a number of delicious new seasonal recipes using Red Tractor ingredients. The recipes compliment the 'What's in Season' section of the new consumer microsite using quality ingredients when they are at their best.

The Red Tractor logo is appearing on an even wider range of products than ever before.

Assured Food Standards (AFS) is launching the first ever Red Tractor Week, running from 9-15 July. The week, fronted by celebrity chef James Tanner, will be full of fun activities highlighting the benefits of the Red Tractor Scheme to shoppers.

Members of Parliament raced across the cobbles of Covent Garden on mini tractors to mark the launch of Red Tractor Week 2007.

A recent survey by the Trading Standards Institute found 100% of Trading Standards Officers believe that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between LACORS and AFS is a positive step towards enforcing the new legislation on animal welfare and food safety.

Leading UK brewery, Wells and Young's, has become the first major brewer to promote the Red Tractor logo. The Bedford based company will now carry the Red Tractor logo on all its bottles of Young’s Bitter in a move to assure consumers that the ale is made using only British raw ingredients.

We would like to thank you for your continued support for AFS and Red Tractor Assurance during 2007 and share with you some of the highlights of our activities over the last twelve months.

McCain Foods has become the largest frozen food manufacturer to join the Red Tractor Scheme.

Cereal Partners UK (CPUK) has announced its commitment to the Red Tractor by becoming the first cereal manufacturer to use the logo. The Red Tractor logo will appear on packs of Nestlé Shredded Wheat, Shredded Wheat Bitesize and Organic Shredded Wheat Bitesize from the end of September.

The Red Tractor logo can now be found on over £6.4bn of food every year, an increase of over £1bn from £5.3bn in 2006.

From 1st September 2007 Quality British turkeys will also be labelled with the Red Tractor logo. After several months of discussion the Red Tractor scheme will recognise that turkey meat from farms certified under the Quality British Turkey (QBT) scheme is suitable to carry the Red Tractor logo.

The Year of Food and Farming, running from September 2007 to July 2008, aims to teach children more about food, farming and the countryside. Schools will be encouraged to get involved in three key areas: visiting farms and food businesses, growing food and cooking food.