French fries producer McCain will help growers in the United Kingdom to better arm themselves against the consequences of climate change and the corona crisis. The company is making an investment of almost €28 million for this.
The world market leader in the French fries industry today launches the 'McCain Potato Farmer Pledge' campaign. This is reported by BusinessGreen. With the campaign, McCain wants to help farmers better adapt to the increasing weather extremes. "British potato growers have been hit hard in recent years," said Howard Snape, McCain UK and Ireland director. Extreme drought in 2018 was followed by abundant rainfall in 2019. "Growers have experienced 2 of the worst harvests in 40 years."
The corona crisis is adding to that this year. If McCain had not honored the contracts and had not found alternative outlets, there would have been a huge surplus of potatoes, according to the French fries producer. According to Snape, more collaboration is needed to meet future challenges.
Financing through contracts
With the new campaign, McCain is making a €27,7 million grant available to help growers invest in more sustainable irrigation systems and other innovative technologies, such as self-propelled harvesters. The financing will be provided through the contracts that the company concludes with growers. For example, McCain has announced that it will raise the prices of early varieties so that growers receive a fair wage.
Investing in collaboration
In addition, the French fries producer wants to work with multi-year incentive programs of 3 to 5 years, whereby growers are rewarded for continuity in their deliveries. With this, McCain wants to boost the relationship with suppliers. “We are committed to more collaboration between farmers, buyers, key industry players and government to create a sustainable future for the years to come,” said Snape.
According to McCain, an example of this collaboration is combating food waste during the corona crisis. Potato varieties that normally go to the processing industry are given an alternative destination. For example, surplus stock is donated to food banks through a collaboration with FareShare and potato stocks are stored where possible.
NFU is delighted
The National Farmers Union (NFU) welcomes the new McCain campaign with open arms. Last year, the organization launched a strategy to significantly reduce emissions by 2040 and to strengthen the sector's climate resilience. According to the NFU, all (financial) support that growers can receive is more than welcome and much needed to gain confidence in the future.