Violators of the sector’s code of conduct will be subject to fines of up to 10% of annual revenue.
Australia will impose heavy fines on supermarket chains that abuse their bargaining power over suppliers.
Under rules announced by the government on Monday, supermarket chains earning more than A$5 billion ($3.3 billion) in annual revenue will be required to comply with a previously agreed industry code of conduct. voluntary.
The changes will cover Woolworths, Coles, Aldi and Metcash, which together represent more than 80% of the market, and could expand to retailers such as Costco as their revenue grows.
Violations of the code will be subject to fines of up to 10% of annual turnover, leaving retailers on the hook for billions of dollars in fines.
The government said it would also establish an anonymous supplier and whistleblower complaints mechanism within the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
“It’s about getting a fair shot for families and a fair shot for farmers. Our efforts will help ensure our supermarkets are as competitive as possible, so Australians get the best prices possible,” Treasurer Jim Chalmers said on Monday in a joint statement with Assistant Competition Minister Andrew Leigh and the Minister of Agriculture, Murray Watt. .
“We are cracking down on anti-competitive behavior in the supermarket sector so people can get fairer prices at the checkout,” the statement said.
The changes come after a report by Craig Emerson, former competition minister, concluded that the previous code failed to resolve the “negotiating power imbalance” between supermarkets and their suppliers.
In its report, Emerson said suppliers reported fearing retaliation from supermarkets if they complained and that an effective code needed a “credible threat of effective enforcement and not be undermined by the threat of signatories walking away from their commitments”.
Australia has one of the most concentrated food markets in the world.
Woolworths and Coles, the biggest and second biggest players, together account for around two-thirds of all sales.
A survey released by consumer group Choice last week found there was less than a dollar difference in price between the two chains when comparing a typical basket of groceries.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
