For our growers who didn't have time (or the inclination) to listen to day one of the supermarket inquiry in Canberra we've put together the day in a nutshell (so to speak).
First up giving evidence was Professor Allan Fells, the previous chair of the ACCC. As a long time and vocal advocate of the government increasing the powers of the ACCC, the professor was asked a plethora of questions by the committee around competition and divestiture.
Next up was Abdel Badoura (an industry insider). Abdel explained the four ways a supplier of non-perishables has to do business with a retailer.
- Agree to the terms they set;
- Meet the category margin - that is more than 40 per cent - that they set;
- Agree to the promotional plan and margin, which is again set by them despite most being funded by the suppliers; and
- Commit to significant advertising support in Coles and Woolworths owned media, typically in amounts exceeding half a million dollars.
Mr Badoura went on to say by giving evidence he had effectively made himself unemployable in the industry and possibly others - yet he felt compelled to speak up.
Next up was the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union, who represented its members and spoke of the low pay and conditions of retail employees.
The Australian Dairy Products Federation and the Australian Food and Grocery Council both made some excellent statements around cost of production in Australia versus the rest of the world, systemic behaviour issues, the misplaced pressure on suppliers to drive consumer prices down, and data becoming essential for a 'right to play'.
Unfortunately, I missed the Australian Council of Trade Unions and the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association, but I sincerely hope they spoke about how our growers are ticking off almost every box which would describe them as modern-day slaves.
Lastly, it was time for Bunnings and the current chair of the ACCC to take the stand. The real cringeworthy moment of the day was reserved for Bunnings, who thus far had eluded the scope of the inquiry. The answers it provided the committee did nothing to allay anyone's fear that it is engaging in the same low tactics as its supermarket colleagues.
NSW Nationals Senator Ross Cadell suggested the evidence given to the committee did not align with what the representatives were saying. "People have said that they say nice things to you because they want to keep their contracts. Why is no one coming to us and saying you are good corporate citizens?" He said growers were "smiling to survive".
Smiling to survive might just be our favourite quote yet - as it summarises so well the corporate Stockholm syndrome we have said is playing out right in front of our eyes.
