Low in carbon, high in taste

Our approach…

At ASDA, we’re committed to working with our suppliers to provide food that is better for our customers and the environment, at our famously low prices.

The people helping us make that happen are farmers such as Melvyn Trofer from Lincolnshire, the man responsible for developing our low carbon, free range eggs – also known as Respectful Eggs.

Our people…

Melvyn has been farming with sustainable methods for five years now.

"We were looking for a sustainable method to power our hen houses," explains Melvyn, a poultry man with nearly 40 years experience. "So we turned to wind turbines and solar panels."

"The project worked so well on two sites in Scopwick, we decided to use it on our other farms. ASDA were really supportive of what we were doing, and asked us to start supplying them with our ‘low carbon eggs’."

Melvyn is proud of Respectful’s other low carbon innovations: "We buy our grain from local farmers, and mill it ourselves so the finished feed never travels more than ten miles from our own feed mill to our hens."

As well as a diet of local grain, the birds are free to roam around Respectful’s pastures and forage in the grass. They are kept in much smaller flocks than on conventional farms and their hen houses are designed to encourage natural behaviour such as nesting, dust bathing and perching – all of which makes for happier hens.

Our future…

When it comes to the future, Melvyn is confident that Respectful’s farming techniques will soon become the norm: "Things like wind turbines and local feed are just common sense nowadays. I look forward to continuing this work with ASDA, and to one day making all eggs Respectful."