The number of primary shoppers who say they will trade up and buy Red Tractor food instead of cheaper alternatives has jumped by 1.4 million following the assurance scheme’s autumn advertising campaign.
An eight-week programme of activity spearheaded by the organisation’s first ever TV advert began in September with the British public polled by YouGov before and after the campaign.
As well as the spike in purchasing intent, the number of shoppers associating the logo with ‘traceable food from farms to pack’ has nearly doubled to 62%.
The assurance scheme’s chief executive Jim Moseley said the results were fantastic, adding that this is “just the start” of a prolonged campaign to enhance the reputation of the logo.
But he warned farmers that the only way the scheme could maintain its hard-earned integrity was if assured farms remained 100% compliant 365 days of the year.
Mr Moseley said: “We can immediately see a direct benefit to our members through the sheer number of people who say they will now choose Red Tractor over a non-assured product.
“This is just the start and we will continue to enhance the reputation of our world-leading assurance scheme. We need to do this together. We need our members to maintain Red Tractor’s standards every day of the week to show consumers that we have something robust they can trust and buy into.”
Market research has already shown that shoppers are twice as likely to buy Red Tractor food and drink when they know what the logo stands for.
The number of shoppers who said the logo will make them choose a Red Tractor product over the cheapest one rose from 36% before the campaign in September to 41% after it finished in November.
The Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board said the five percentage point lift equates to an additional 1.4million shoppers.
Mr Moseley said: “This campaign is a building block as we bid to become the flagship for British food and farming. Increasing confidence in Red Tractor is vital, particularly as we approach Brexit.”
Red Tractor is planning to run another campaign in 2019 to maintain momentum.
Dorset pig farmer Robert Lasseter said the Red Tractor supply chain has proved itself and goes from strength-to-strength.
“It is vital to my business and I couldn’t trade without it,” Mr Lasseter said.
“I find it extraordinary how many people I still speak to that don’t know about Red Tractor’s importance to them in delivering healthy, safe food, produced to the exacting scheme standards that are rigorously audited, so it’s really encouraging to find out that through Red Tractor’s investment in this TV advert another 1.4m shoppers are changing their shopping habits.
“That is a really positive start; there is a lot to build on and enormous scope for increasing awareness among our customers.”
