The CEO of Queensland Farmers Federation, Jo Sheppard, has raised concerns for farmers who are struggling with an increased production cost of up to 65 percent over the last three to four years.
She further stated that some farmers haven’t seen profit increases similar to the profit of supermarkets for up to 10 years.
Queensland Premier Steven Miles expressed his frustration at the difference between the prices retailers pay farmers and the price customers pay at the checkout.
“These are important people, they are families, they work hard every day and I don’t want to see them walking off their farms because the land is more valuable than what they can get for their produce and because they’ve been treated poorly by supermarkets,” he stated.
Mr. Miles will meet with supermarket CEOs today to discuss what they have done to address rising prices and their future intentions.
The premier found it important to meet with the retail giants to ensure they were upholding the voluntary code of practice.
This code ensures that retailers are acting in good faith with suppliers as well as ensuring farmers have the right to an arbiter, someone who can dispute issues between the grower and supermarket.
“I personally believe that the code should be mandatory, not voluntary,” Mr. Miles stated.
However, an issue with the code has arisen, with CEO of Queensland Food and Vegetable Growers Rachel Chambers explaining that “the arbiters are paid for by the supermarkets, however, they are labelled as independent.”
“We don’t think they should be attached to the supermarket that they’re supposed to be independently representing the grower too,” she said.
The federal government recently announced a review of the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct, prompting the input of Mr. Miles. The review will be undertaken by Craig Emerson, an Australian economist and former parliament member.
Supermarket powerhouses came under suspicion of price gouging and other possibly illegal retail practices last year when they reported profits of over $1 billion (US$656 million) during a cost of living crisis.
The companies have continuously denied the allegations, citing their strategy to cut costs where possible.
Mr. Miles stated in order to deter supermarkets from price gouging, there should be “sufficient penalties.”
The Queensland premier stated that information on possible price gouging and upholding the code of practice is what he “hopes is the outcome of the review.”
