Steak holds a special place for our customers and at M&S Food, it is one of the clearest signals of what customers trust us for: exceptional quality, great value and food that feels special at the centre of the plate.

Customers are expecting restaurant quality steak when they buy it to enjoy at home, and that is what we are known for at M&S Food.

That matters because our ambition is to make M&S a bigger, more relevant Food business for more customers, more often. As we transform the business, our centre-of-the-plate offer has a critical role to play - it is where customers make considered choices and where quality really counts, from taste to responsible sourcing, everything must be of the highest quality.

Over the past few years, we have been looking hard at where we can improve the quality of our steaks. The market has become more competitive, and customers are increasingly looking for restaurant-quality food to enjoy at home - with better flavour, thicker cuts, more consistency and a clearer sense of provenance and responsible, welfare centred farming. To deliver that, we knew this could not simply be a range refresh. It needed a deeper look across the full supply chain, from genetics and farming through to grading, butchery, maturation, packaging and the final product customers see in our Foodhalls.

Building quality from the farm to shelf

The biggest step change has been in how we define and deliver eating quality in steaks.

Historically, much of the industry has relied on more traditional methods of assessment. We wanted to move beyond that and bring more data, more science and more consistency into the process. Through our M&S meat quality approach, we use analytics and technology, to understand the factors that drive tenderness, succulence and flavour.

This matters because great steak starts long before it reaches a butcher’s block. By using better data, we can work more closely with our farmers and supplier partners on the genetics of the herd, the breeds we select and the standards we set. We are being more exacting about what works for M&S, and that gives farmers clearer guidance on how to produce the quality we need.

Restaurant-quality steaks from M&S Foodhalls

As part of the reset, we have stepped on our cuts, our butchery and our maturation. Steaks are thicker and we have introduced more premium cuts, including T-bone and bone in sirloin, and we have put greater focus on ageing and maturation to build flavour.

We have also moved our core steak maturation from 21 days to 30 days, which we believe gives customers a better eating experience. For our Aberdeen Angus Gold range, we have built on what makes the programme special — exclusive genetics, high standards and a focus on tenderness, flavour and consistency.

The result is a steak range that feels more confident, more modern and more distinctively M&S.

Backing British farmers and giving suppliers confidence to invest

Our steak reset is also part of a bigger commitment to British farming.

Earlier this year, M&S announced a £2.1 billion investment through new decade-long contracts with ABP and Dunbia, supporting British beef and lamb supply and giving our supplier partners and farmers the confidence to invest for the long term.

That long-term confidence is critical in beef. Farmers are making decisions years before a product reaches shelf, so certainty matters. By committing for the long term, we can support investment in the best welfare, better facilities, better technology and better processes - all of which help protect quality and consistency and ensure we do the right thing for our farmers and their herds.

At ABP Penston, we are creating a dedicated “fortress factory” model for M&S, protecting our innovation, our butchery standards and our bespoke ways of working. With Dunbia, we have invested in salt dry-aged chambers to build capability in more premium ageing techniques, while training and academy-style support helps ensure butchers working on M&S products are delivering to the same exacting standards.

The steak reset is a great example of what we mean when we talk about protecting and strengthening the magic of M&S Food. It brings together everything that matters to us: exceptional quality, trusted sourcing, long-term partnerships, innovation, value and a relentless focus on the customer.

For me, the most exciting part is that this is not the end of the journey. It gives us a stronger platform to keep improving - across steak, across beef and across the wider meat category.
Customers expect M&S to lead on quality. With this reset, we are making sure we do exactly that.