Life's pretty sweet if you're Coles or Woolies.
You have market power. Supermarket power. You make your own rules.
You can tell shoppers that your Italian par-baked bread is fresh
local produce. You can steal suppliers' secrets to make a
cheaper own brand replica, and then give it the best shelf spot.
That's livin'.
It's all fun and games until the ACCC comes along with their
'truth in advertising' and 'fair play for
suppliers' rules. Following the commencement of an ACCC
investigation into Coles and Woolies' market power, the
Australian Food and Grocery Council has announced an agreement with
Coles and Woolies on a Food and Grocery Code.
The Code aims to address the massive imbalance in bargaining
power between Coles and Woolies and their suppliers. It limits
Coles and Woolies' ability to make one-sided contract
variations and requires greater transparency about shelf allocation
rules. It also requires that Coles and Woolies not steal
suppliers' intellectual
