An environmental protest group has engaged in 'Robin Hood' action in Glasgow, taking items from supermarket shelves and depositing them in foodbank collections.

On Monday morning at around 11am eight members of This Is Rigged entered two Glasgow branches of Tesco, taking essential items from the shelves and putting them in the areas for donations.

The group, which opposes all new oil and gas projects, said it had targeted the stores on Sauchiehall Street and at St Enoch due to the rate of food inflation.

Research by the union Unite found that in the UK profit margins for the FTSE's biggest listed companies were 73% higher in 2021 than pre-pandemic levels in 2019 despite lower sales.

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The Herald:

Even removing energy companies from the tally, average profit margins still jumped 52% according to the research.

Unite found that just 8.3% of inflation was due to labour costs, while the jump in profits contributed 58.7%.

While Tesco saw pre-tax profits drop in the last financial year, it still brought in £1bn of profit.

The action replicates another by the group last month (April 30th) in which 8 supermarkets around Glasgow (including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, M&S and Waitrose) were targeted.

The group promises to continue targeting supermarkets, as a means to redistribute essential resources into the community. They are encouraging people to replicate the action, with a ‘How-To’ guide published on their website.

Sophie 19, a Linguistics Student who took action on Monday morning said: "I am taking part in this robin hood action because the companies continue to profit as more and more people are going to food banks. We cannot stand by and watch people in our community suffer."

Read More: Climate activists target William Wallace display in oil protest

Lindsey 23, a Sustainability and Environmental Studies Student said: "I took action against the cost of living crisis today because large supermarket corporations are stealing from ordinary people. It doesn't have to be this way. As a community, we need to come together and take a stand against this and take back the right to affordable necessities."

This is Rigged have been causing disruption in Scotland since the start of the year, from disrupting FMQs weekly to smashing the glass case to William Wallace's sword and painting Holyrood red. Last month, the group vowed to “escalate,” announcing plans to disrupt oil and gas infrastructure in Scotland this summer, until their demand is met.

Tesco have been approached for comment.