Lord Haskins, Labour peer and founder of the multi-million pound Northern Foods empire, has championed the need for cheap food to be available for the poor in Britain.
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Attacking notions that people should pay more for safe food, Haskins told the Guardian: “It’s facetious to say we can all afford to spend more on our food. Cheap food is vital to millions of poor people in Britain who spend a big proportion of their income on it.”
Haskin’s increasing influence over the reform of the common agricultural policy has angered critics who claim his business self-interest will prevent unbiased judgements. In particular the green movement has criticised his belief that a return to traditional or organic farming methods is unviable.
“I understand the issue about a conflict of interest,” he said: “But if the government wants a problem looking at, it can either go to someone like an independent lawyer and spend years getting a bureaucratic response, or go to someone who knows something about it. Unfortunately the people who know something about it are in the industry.
“The test, therefore, is to make sure I don’t abuse my position and push a vested interest point of view. It is a dilemma which I am always aware of,” he added.
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