Australian farming associations have leveled accusations against major supermarkets, asserting they exploit their market dominance to skew prices, leading to high costs for consumers and low returns for producers. This allegation emerges amidst falling global agricultural prices that haven't impacted grocery bills and increased examination of supermarket pricing strategies through newly launched federal and state parliamentary inquiries.
Xavier Martin, president of the NSW Farmers Association, contends the food retail market is malfunctioning, with the leading supermarket chains holding excessive power. Martin calls for enforced fairness rules, arguing that equitable pricing would benefit all parties, but current unfair trading practices distort the market.
Supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths command two-thirds of Australia's market, with Aldi trailing at just over 10%. With renewed political interest in supermarket practices and farmers' criticism of the stagnant produce prices, there is a call for a correlation between lower supermarket prices and increased purchases, which could lead to higher returns for farmers.
Despite these allegations, major grocery retailers defend their pricing decisions, asserting their commitment to aiding Australians with cost-of-living pressures. They argue that their long-term relationships and contracts with the farming sector do not reflect volatile saleyard prices.
Amid these disputes, the major chains are now under various investigations, including an upcoming Senate inquiry and a separate Queensland parliamentary inquiry. Farming groups have also called for a competition regulator investigation to assess the sector's competitiveness.
Source: theguardian.com
