Tesco said "the UK's future food security is at stake" and the government should pause the introduction of inheritance tax on farms worth over £1m. Tesco is Britain's biggest supermarket and together with Lidl and Aldi they make up around 45% of the British grocery market so their warnings on Wednesday will add to pressure on the government.

Aldi has signed a letter by the NFU backing calls for a pause in the implementation of changes to inheritance tax affecting family farms. Lidl has said it is also backing the farming community by calling for consultation on the controversial tax.