The price war breaking out on fruit and vegetables between Coles and Woolworths risks causing great heartache for primary producers in the same way as the duopoly’s increase in home brand products devastated the nations manufacturing base, CFMEU National Secretary, Michael O'Connor said today.
Moves last year by the supermarket chains effectively priced local suppliers out of the market and constrained choice for consumers, driving jobs offshore.
Mr. O'Connor said the current ACCC inquiry into the duopoly needed to watch closely to see if the fruit and vegetable price war breaking out impacted on farmers. "Too many manufacturing jobs have already been lost across Australia due to the predatory practices of the supermarket duopoly. It is not in the national interest to have this extraordinary market concentration enjoyed by the duopoly impacting on our farmers now too,"
The CFMEU ran a successful campaign against Woolworths in 2007 and 2008, when the company used its Homebrand line to threaten the jobs of hundreds of pulp and paper manufacturing workers who were producing tissue products. At the time, the company had shifted to importing products made by Asian Pulp & Paper, a company that has been repeatedly accused of deforestation of Indonesian rainforests.
Mr. O'Connor advised Woolworths and Coles to heed the lessons of that campaign. "Woolworths announced a net profit of $2.12 billion last financial year and Coles profit was $1.6 billion. They have absolutely no excuse to send more manufacturing jobs offshore by manipulating supply chains," Mr. O'Connor said. “If primary producers and manufacturers are to be treated fairly, which is the position the Prime Minister put yesterday, then the Government needs to be doing more than just the ACCC inquiry into this out of control duopoly.”
"It's time these companies exercised more social responsibility for Australian jobs and families."
