With the creation of the Tesco Value range in 1993, Tesco established itself as one of the leading UK supermarkets. However, in recent years they have been struggling to compete with the prices of discounter supermarkets such as Aldi and Lidl, as customers are more inclined to buy higher range brands at cheaper supermarkets instead of overtly “value” brands for the same price. Tesco launched their fake farm brands in order to combat this.

So why has this move proved controversial?

The supermarket’s decision to use typically British sounding farm names (Woodside, Willow, and Boswell all sound as if they’ve come from a Thomas Hardy novel) in an attempt to appeal to consumers has led to claims from the NFU that they are intentionally misleading them, as only some of the food is sourced from within the UK. The union claims that out of 1,800 people who believed these farm labels were sourced from the UK, 60% of them said they would feel misled if they discovered that wasn’t true. This is particularly problematic considering that Tesco pledged their support to British farmers, and promised to improve their commitment to providing clear and accurate information following the horsemeat scandal back in 2013.

The same “fake farm” brand tactic has been used by other supermarkets, most notably Aldi, one of Tesco’s main discounter competitors. However, they have avoided the ire of the NFU following their announcement to only source meat from UK suppliers for these brands in the near future.

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This is a serious problem for Tesco - they can’t source their produce solely from the UK and match Aldi’s prices, but if they keep outsourcing they will continue to be under scrutiny from British farmers and risk a PR disaster. This situation is yet another case of Tesco struggling with their brand positioning in recent years. Despite their attempts to appeal to both those who shop at the premium supermarkets, such as Waitrose, with their Finest range and their efforts to fend off the relentless attacks of the discounters, Tesco is fast becoming a middle-ground supermarket that can’t replicate the customer loyalty of its rivals.

What can marketers learn from this?

The key lesson to take away from the backlash to Tesco’s fake farm brands is to ensure that all new products and branding is unambiguously consistent with your brand values. Today, customers expect brands to be open, honest and authentic, they’re increasingly interested in understanding provenance and MUCH more marketing-savvy than they used to be. Brands must be as clear as they can be to avoid confusing customers - if they believe they are being misled, there could be serious repercussions.