Morrisons’ test case 

Sir: The move by Morrisons will enable us to see if British consumers are willing to support British farmers. They are certainly voicing their willingness in research, so this is a real test case.

Shoppers are unlikely to be switching stores because of milk prices. There are retailers that have seen sales increase when prices drop, but was the uplift down to increased traffic to store - or budget shoppers taking advantage when visiting anyway? If the Morrisons initiative works, then perhaps we’ll see moves on a variety of British farm categories. However, transparency will be key since shopper cynicism is at an all-time high and they’ll want to know the pricing increases are genuinely being passed back.

Danielle Pinnington, MD, Shoppercentric

Boarding pass profits

Sir: In the eyes of HMRC, these retailers aren’t really doing anything wrong. They do not have to account for VAT on goods supplied to people leaving on flights for destinations outside the EU.

That is why they need the boarding passes, to substantiate not paying VAT to HMRC.

The issue of whether they then pass that saving on to customers is another matter. If they choose not to pass on the VAT saving, they will be making ­significantly more profit on these sales.

However, these retailers have sophisticated PoS till systems that could cope with ensuring there is no VAT charged on sales to travellers heading outside the EU. Even if the shelf prices do not indicate dual pricing, there could be a little bonus at the till, when only £16.67 has to be paid, instead of £20.

Alison Sampson, VAT consultant, Knill James

Have you got talent?

Sir: While the latest ONS figures reveal employment levels are still high, there is still a severe shortage of experienced, skilled technical workers in the fmcg sector - severely impacting companies’ ability to grow. Investing in quality technical specialists is more important than ever, and we have seen increasing demand for a hybrid approach to workforce solutions in tune with specific long and short-term business challenges.

Firms must offer a complete package that extends beyond a competitive salary if they hope to retain the best talent.

Farida Gibbs, founder and CEO, Gibbs S3