How Tilda Rice Is Turning Sustainability Into A Competitive Advantage

Consumers are voting with their wallets when it comes to sustainability. In the grocery aisles, decisions are no longer driven solely by price or quality—environmental impact is now a factor. Tilda—Britain’s top‑selling rice brand ahead of Ben’s Original from Mars— has been reshaping its farming practices and seems to be benefiting from the shift.

At the agricultural end of its Basmati supply chain—the paddy fields of northern India—the company has intensified efforts to cut water use and reduce methane emissions (more on this below).

These changes align with a broader industry challenge. A 2024 Deloitte study, The Sustainable Consumer, notes that the global food sector accounts for roughly a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions, spanning CO₂, methane, and nitrogen. Around two‑thirds of those emissions originate in agriculture, forestry, and land use, with the remainder tied to processing, transport, and packaging.

In her data-rich book on Earth’s future titled Not The End of the World, Hannah Ritchie, a senior researcher at the University of Oxford, said: “Look at any of the world’s environmental problems and food lies close to the center. It really is at the nexus of sustainability.”

By tackling sustainability at source, Tilda is positioning itself ahead of a curve that increasingly matters to everyone, including shoppers. A meta‑analysis of 51 studies by the University of Queensland concluded that rice consumers found that sustainable production, labels and certificates, and environmental concerns were three of the five most mentioned factors influencing rice preferences.

This is a strong signal that sustainability affects purchasing, and it has been taken onboard by Tilda, a B Corp-certified company since 2023. The brand, founded in 1970 in the U.K., has been part of Spain’s Ebro Foods, the world’s leader in rice production, since 2019. Ebro’s rice division has faced significant headwinds lately. In the first nine months of 2025, long‑grain rice prices in Asia and South America hit their lowest levels in 40 years, effectively freezing global markets. Indian production has also been hit by Trump’s tariffs, levied at 25%, plus an additional 25% penalty linked to purchasing Russian oil.

Bucking the sales trend

Ebro’s pressures contributed to a 4% revenue drop at the rice division, down to €1.77 billion ($2.06 billion), representing 78% of total group sales. Yet Tilda bucked the trend, delivering robust growth across its key markets, including the U.K., Canada, the Middle East, Australia, and Spain. Its performance mirrors the global strength of the microwaveable rice segment, particularly in the United States, France, and Spain.

Environmental credentials are only one factor behind Tilda’s resilience, but they are proving influential in what Ebro describes as “an exceptionally competitive environment.” As U.K. managing director Jean‑Philippe Laborde told Forbes.com, the company is reframing sustainability across the entire chain—from cultivation and wholesale distribution, to retail and the end consumer.

Tilda has spent three years trialing and scaling regenerative practices—most notably water‑reduction techniques and fertilizer optimization. The latest results, due to be published in the brand’s next impact report later this year, are expected to be pivotal. “Three years of data means we can even go to research-paper level,” said Laborde. “It’s not just progress—it’s proof.”

With around 50% of its Basmati supply already covered by these programs, Tilda believes it is on track to reach full coverage within a few years. The real challenge is not the science—it’s the communication. And here, Tilda sees a clear hierarchy of audiences.

Clarifying the primary audience

Despite the complexity of sustainability metrics, Tilda’s leadership is adamant that the end consumer is the key audience. Research conducted by the company shows that 63% of consumers believe brand owners are not doing enough about sustainability, or at least not communicating it clearly. Many shoppers also assume that sustainability claims mean higher prices or compromised product quality—two perceptions Tilda is determined to counter.

For the brand, the goal is to translate technical agricultural progress into trustworthy, consumer‑friendly language. That means avoiding jargon or over‑claiming, and focusing on tangible impact—particularly the benefits delivered directly to farmers. “You can’t do everything,” said the MD. “You need to take a few key steps where you can have real impact, work on them, and communicate them clearly.”

At the retailer level, while pricing is important, major U.K. grocers increasingly expect their suppliers to demonstrate measurable environmental progress, partly because their own carbon‑reduction strategies depend on it. Scope 3 emissions—those generated in the supply chain—are the hardest for retailers to control, which shifts the pressure onto suppliers.

Tilda’s B Corp certification—a route many companies are taking— has opened doors, enabling more constructive conversations and reducing the tension that often characterizes supplier-retailer relationships. Some grocers have even created dedicated B Corp in-store areas, with upscale supermarket Waitrose offering an online page called ‘B Corp: Food Cupboard’ where Tilda is strongly represented.

Wins in the ethnic wholesale sector

The surprise, however, is the ethnic market, which is where Tilda began its journey in the 1970s. Contrary to expectations, Tilda has found that independent cash‑and‑carry operators—many owned by South Asian families—are highly engaged when it comes to sustainability. Their interest is often personal, rooted in cultural and agricultural ties to the regions in India where Tilda sources its rice. What began as tentative five‑minute briefings have evolved into in‑depth sustainability discussions with key wholesalers.

Across all channels, the company’s message is consistent, and getting louder: sustainability must be meaningful, scalable, and transparent. And while retailers and wholesalers play crucial roles in amplifying that message, Tilda sees the consumer as the ultimate judge.

A growing evidence base

As the company prepares to release its third‑year data later this year, it is positioning sustainability not as a marketing lever, but as a long‑term commitment to farmers, natural ecosystems, which it hopes will engender trust from retail buyers and shoppers.

Back in the paddy fields of India, Tilda has now successfully recruited all of the farmers it works with to adopt the Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) method, a major milestone in its sustainability journey. This also saves the farmers money in reduced fertiliser use of almost 20% per hectare. The AWD program was launched in 2021 and now includes 3,240 farms covering 10,900 hectares.

AWD, a water-saving, intermittent irrigation technique developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), cuts methane emissions caused by conventional permanently flooding of fields by as much as 45%. Methane is among the most potent greenhouse gases associated with traditional rice farming.

According to Tilda’s latest data, AWD farms have cut average carbon footprints to 766kg CO₂ per tonne of rice, compared with 1,177 kg for non-AWD farms and saved more than 22 billion litres of water annually—equivalent to the consumption of 428,000 U.K. adults. AWD yields have also increased by nearly 6%, lifting farm income by 7% per hectare.

Laborde said: “AWD has already transformed the climate and economic footprint of Basmati farming and we are immensely proud of the progress the farmers are making. Sustainability is about continuous improvement, and this milestone shows what can be achieved when business, science, and farmers work together.”

The next challenge: nitrous oxide

The upsides have come with challenges. While AWD reduces methane and water use, drier soils, through exposure of synthetic fertilizers to oxygen, stimulate nitrous oxide (N₂O) release, a greenhouse gas almost 300 times more damaging than CO₂. The release offsets an estimated 10-15% of AWD’s methane-reduction benefits.

To address this, Tilda and academic partners are now testing bio-fertilizers containing beneficial arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. Early comparisons versus synthetic fertilizers have shown stronger root growth, improved plant performance, and in one case, a farmer reported yield gain of up to 20%.

Dr. Emily Servante, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Cambridge Crop Science Centre and Tilda’s lead scientific partner, said: “These early results are extremely encouraging. We’ve confirmed that AM fungi naturally associate with Pusa Basmati rice, and that bio-fertilizers can enhance root development and crop vigor.”

Tilda is continuing the research this year as it investigates whether synthetic inputs can be progressively reduced or even replaced with bio-fertilizers. Servante added: “Our next step is to quantify these benefits at scale and ensure that any inputs are truly sustainable.”

Sustainability has become one of the most contested and misunderstood battlegrounds in modern food retail, but for Tilda, the path forward is becoming clearer—and aligned with what the consumer wants. The shift goes beyond certification badges or marketing language. It is, Laborde argues, about rebuilding trust with consumers while bringing every stakeholder in the value chain along for the journey.