Draft code of practice for grocery sector welcomed by farmer groups

THE country’s two largest farmer groups have welcomed the publication of the Travers Report setting out details of the draft statutory code of practice for the grocery goods sector.

IFA president John Bryan said: “Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD must ensure that the code also prioritises more equity in the food supply chain for primary producers as well as consumers.

“In particular, retailers must be held responsible for the impact their pricing policies have on the viability of primary producers,” Mr Bryan said.

“Retailer dominance and their predatory business practices has resulted in the loss of jobs and bankrupted Irish businesses by driving down prices to farmers and small suppliers to unviable levels as they protect their own excessive margins. The code must address this fundamental flaw and ensure that all players in the food supply chain receive fair play.”

Mr Bryan also said that the code must include penalties to ensure that the retailers comply with it.

ICMSA president Jackie Cahill also welcomed the new retail code of practice, and suggested that “we might see manners being put on some of these gigantic retail concerns that have so flagrantly abused their power”.

Mr Cahill described the code as a first step in addressing what he described as the chronic imbalance that had been permitted to develop in terms of retail margins to the disadvantage of food producers and consumers.

“Any such code must be followed up by action at EU level as this problem is most certainly not unique to Ireland but exists at both EU and global levels.

“Given the export orientation of our agri-food sector, Irish primary producers are suffering disproportionately due to unfair retail practices in other EU countries and this makes the necessity for tackling the problem at EU level even more pressing. All in all, this announcement represents progress in the restoration of fairness to the margins being taken along the food chain,” he added.

Mr Cahill said the code must be underpinned by a sufficiently robust implementation regime and the clearest indicator of its effectiveness will be higher prices for primary producers without any corresponding impact on consumer prices.

The new code was also welcomed by the Food and Drink Industry Ireland (FDII), which is part of the employer group IBEC.

FDII head of consumer foods, Shane Dempsey, said: “The food industry has long sought the introduction of a code of practice in the grocery sector to ensure that Irish consumers can access the range of high-quality products, produced by Irish food companies, in convenient locations and at affordable prices.

“We agree that job creation and consumer interests are a key priority and that the food and retailing sectors must deliver an efficient grocery goods sector,” he said.