The NFF Horticulture Council has today reaffirmed its call for tighter government controls on supermarket trading practices as annual profits are reported by the major listed companies.
Council chair, Jolyon Burnett said the results would speak for themselves, and that not even a cost-of-living crisis had dampened the supermarket drive for profits above all else.
“When pitching their annual results to investors, supermarkets will make a show of their year-on-year growth and expanding profits, but will at the same time tell suppliers they can’t afford to pay them any more,” said Mr Burnett.
“In some instances, we have growers telling us they’ve not had an increase in the price they’re paid for as long as a decade.
“It amounts to corporate gaslighting at a grand scale and shows total disrespect to longstanding and long-suffering suppliers, who are not getting a fair share of the supermarket success.
“The Council has written to the Treasurer specifically on tightening controls on how supermarkets trade fresh produce, including how they negotiate on price and the way supermarkets calculate and communicate with suppliers about volumes they expect to order.
“Government needs to grapple with the fact supermarkets will continue to walk all over customers and suppliers to deliver ever increasing profits for shareholders.
“There is absolutely public benefit from having both affordable food and a sustainable farming sector, which the market is now most obviously failing to deliver.
“The case for greater government intervention has never been as clear.”
