A Treasury-commissioned review recommends making the existing voluntary food and grocery code of conduct mandatory.
The voluntary code sets standards for wholesalers, retailers and suppliers to try and ensure fair negotiations over prices for products. While prescribed under federal legislation, signing up is optional and there are no penalties for breaches.
The review recommends a complaints mechanism, action to deal with retribution against suppliers, obligations for supermarkets to act in good faith and penalties of up to A$10 million for non-compliance.
But will this be enough to change the way supermarkets operate in Australia?
An article written by QUT researchers Carol Richards, Bree Hurst, Hope Johnson and Rudolf Messner explains why we need more action from Government.
You can read the article in The Conversation.
