Sainsbury's King defends food imports

King: concerns are 'misplaced and ill-judged'

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Sainsbury's chief executive Justin King will defend the importing of food despite concerns over food miles.

Later today, King is expected to say that shoppers' concerns over how far food has travelled are "misplaced and ill-judged".

The Telegraph reports that, speaking at the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester, King will say that the volumes of British food on supermarket shelves is "fundamentally flawed".

King will argue that trade with developing countries such as Africa is vital to help lift countries out of poverty. "We know that, because of the size of our business, we can make a real difference to people in places like Africa. That is why I am concerned about some suggestions that we should be focusing more on buying British, or at least European."

He will argue that concerns over the environment are overshadowing the need to reduce poverty.

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