THE Victorian Farmers Federation has been campaigning for more than a decade on the way Australia’s big two supermarkets pay farmers and charge customers.
It has held high-level meetings with Coles and Woolworths about their pricing structures around fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy products.
So, too, have NSW Farmers and other state agricultural industry peak bodies.
With last month’s massive profit announcements by both chains, NSW Farmers has been first cab off the rank to describe the billion-dollar postings as “a stark reminder of the ‘profit push’ practices of the nation’s supermarket duopoly, which continues to cause pain at the checkout as well as the farm gate”.
NSW Farmers vice-president Rebecca Reardon said the billion-dollar profits were also a reminder Australian families were paying the price for competition policy failures.
Coles posted a $1.1 billion annual profit on August 27 while Woolworths announced a $1.7 billion profit on August 28.
“Crunch the numbers and it’s clear these super profits simply don’t stack up as the cost-of-living crisis continues,” Mrs Reardon said.
“The cost of food increased more than 14 per cent between December 2021 and December 2023, and while we’ve had inquiries this year, farmers are still receiving prices below the cost of production for their produce.
“This means farmers are struggling to afford to produce the food families are now struggling to afford while the grocery giants suck all the profit out between the paddock and plate.”
Mrs Reardon said meaningful competition reform had to be a major priority for the Federal Government, with emerging issues such as banking and airline competition presenting problems.
“Australians expect a fair go, but there are businesses out there making billions while people struggle and that’s just not right,” she said.
“The ugly truth is out there and we need real action, real consequences and real powers for our consumer watchdog because these businesses will only keep lining their pockets until we pull them up.
“In the short term, a mandatory, enforceable Food and Grocery Code of Conduct – as well as new divestiture powers as a tool to bust apart supermarkets for bad behaviour – is what we desperately need to hold these middlemen and their actions to account.”
