Lidl, Aldi, and Tesco have become the latest food retailers to raise concerns over the government’s controversial plans to impose inheritance tax on farms valued at over £1m.
A statement from Lidl GB said: “As a supermarket, we are one of agriculture’s biggest customers and being able to buy British-sourced produce is incredibly important to Lidl shoppers. With two-thirds of our products sourced from British suppliers, including 100% of our everyday fresh beef, pork, poultry, milk, butter, cream and eggs, it’s important that we help British farmers, food producers, and suppliers thrive now and in the future.
“Providing security and long-term investment for British agriculture is key to helping ensure that farmers can continue to produce affordable and increasingly sustainable food for generations to come. We are concerned that the recent changes to the Inheritance Tax (IHT) regime will impact farmer and grower confidence and hold back the investment needed to build a resilient, productive and sustainable British food system.
“We, therefore, support the call by the farming community to pause the implementation of those changes and to consult with industry to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome. We will be raising our concerns with government at any opportunity we get.”
Meanwhile, Tesco’s Chief Commercial Officer Ashwin Prasad also warned today that the “UK’s future food security is at stake” and called for a pause in the rollout of the inheritance tax change.
In a blog published on the Tesco website, he said the retailer “fully” understood the concerns of farmers over changes to agriculture and business property reliefs announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in her Budget on 30 October.
“It’s why we’ll be supporting the NFU’s calls for a pause in the implementation of the policy while a full consultation is carried out,” Prasad said.
“The consultation must be followed by the setting of a long-term vision for UK agriculture, which gives farmers clarity on the role they can play in the UK’s wider transition to net zero, as well as create the right policy conditions for farmers to be able to invest in, and benefit from the transition.”
Aldi later confirmed that it signed a letter by the NFU backing calls for a pause in the implementation of changes to inheritance tax affecting family farms.
A spokesperson for the discounter said: “British farmers and suppliers are the lifeblood of our business. We are proud of our support for the UK farming community and of the fact that 100% of our fresh everyday beef, pork, poultry, eggs, butter, milk and cream is British.
“We all need a farming sector that can confidently invest in its future and continue to produce high-quality British food. That’s why we are supporting the farming community’s calls for the Government to pause the implementation of its proposed changes to inheritance tax until a further period of consultation has taken place.”
Earlier this month, Morrisons’s head of agriculture, Sophie Throup, released a video saying the supermarket supported British farming and shared concerns over the government’s tax changes and cost pressures facing the industry.
NAM Implications:
- What a platform point for Lidl!
- i.e. not just buying British, but fighting to ensure continuity…
- Likewise, Tesco defending (its) farmer partners.
- A call to action by rivals and suppliers for the government to think through the inheritance tax change for farmers…
