NSW Farmers is urgently calling for an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) inquiry into the supermarket retail sector, asserting the pressing need for fair pricing that benefits both consumers and farmers.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
NSW Farmers President Xavier Martin underscores the evident imbalance in the supply chain, lamenting that fair margins are not being passed through equitably.
According to Martin, it is farmers and families who bear the brunt of this situation, with supply chain middlemen engaging in anti-competitive behavior.
He emphasises that many farmers within the NSW Farmers association have reported significant abuses of power by major supermarket chains.
"Margins are not being passed through the supply chain in a fair and equitable manner, and it is farmers and families who are footing the bill," Xavier Martin said.
According to Mr Martin, consumer research indicates a $37 rise in the weekly grocery bill between February 2022 and February 2023.
"Not only are these price increases astonishing, but they are also increasingly unrealistic for consumers and their families in the current economic environment," Mr Martin said.
Despite a review of the food and grocery code of conduct by former competition minister Craig Emerson, Mr. Martin expresses skepticism about its efficacy in addressing the core issues.
"The Emerson review of the code will also rely solely on verbal testimony from stakeholders, rather than a rigorous ACCC analysis of the prices being charged to consumers, the prices being paid to suppliers, and the costs supermarkets incur - which is what we desperately need," he said, stressing that an ACCC inquiry is crucial to ensuring a sustainable and fair supply chain.
