Red meat country of origin audit

We collect data on the share of red meat shelf facings that are given to British and Red Tractor labelled products. Our survey has been running since 2012 and now covers ten major retailers.

The number of facings is the number of items that are fitted horizontally along the front of the shelf. If a product is out of stock at the time of the audit, gaps on shelf are counted where it is clear which product is usually stocked.

Please note: Again this wave we have seen a higher than usual level of bacon and sausage products which are labelled as multiple or mixed origin. Products which could be from multiple countries (e.g. sourced from the UK and EU) are not included in the British total as we cannot determine exact origin. 

Beef and lamb

Following a decision by the Beef & Lamb Board, we no longer collect country of origin data for these sectors; historical data is still available.

If you have any questions, please email Strategic.Insight@ahdb.org.uk

The survey covers all fresh, pre-packed beef, lamb and pork. It measures the number of product facings found in store and so will differ from sales volumes.

Data is collected from Aldi, Asda, Budgens, Coop, Iceland, Lidl, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury, Tesco and Waitrose. Products which could be from multiple countries (e.g. sourced from the UK and EU) are not included in the British total as we cannot determine exact origin. 

Fieldwork is conducted by ESA Retail on behalf of AHDB.

Please note: Due to the coronavirus pandemic, we were unable to collect data for March 2020. 

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