It has become fashionable to pay lip service to environmental issues and political parties, corporations and media celebrities are all queuing up to jump on this particular bandwagon. But sadly, self promotion appears to be the main objective and few seem to add substance to their words by direct action.

I would therefore like to applaud Julian Metcalfe of Prêt à Manger on the bold decision to take tuna sandwiches off the shelves in response to savage imagery from the film documentary End of the Line, which demonstrated the catastrophic decline in fish stocks.

What makes Prêt à Manger’s decision even more remarkable is that tuna sandwiches were probably up there among its best sellers. Imagine; it is like Fresh Direct delisting tomatoes overnight, or McDonald’s withdrawing the burger. Not everyone is going to be so bold in their outlook, however.

Here at Fresh Direct, we are already engaged in an eco-friendly campaign that includes recycling, the establishment of our FD Local network of distribution centres and local farm partnerships, and refusal of excess packaging from our suppliers. We intend to ramp up our advertising with a series of slogans to heighten public awareness, along the lines of “we don’t harpoon our peppers” and “our tomatoes are harvested with great sensitivity”.

And with respect to the potentially sensitive area of wild food harvesting, we have engaged with Scottish Natural Heritage, Reforesting Scotland and the British Mycological Society in the last three months and will shortly be meeting with Trees for Life and the Forestry Commission to discuss joint projects, including the re-establishment of native forests through natural regeneration and the creation of an environment specifically designed for the enhanced production of sustainable wild berries, nuts, roots, herbs and fungi. We hope to plant our very own Fresh Direct forest by November.

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