22 Apr 2015, 16:41
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission must play a proactive role in investigating complaints by primary producers and naming and shaming those found in breach of new Grocery Regulations, according to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
22 April 2015
The IFA Vegetable Committee told the Joint Committee yesterday that downward pressure on pricing, such as the practice of below cost selling, is leading to an ever more precarious position for the Irish horticulture sector. Consequently, the Joint Committee has expressed unanimous support for a more robust regime to deal with below cost selling.
The Joint Committee notes that the €400 million Irish horticulture sector is particularly labour intensive, and as such makes a major contribution to many rural communities. The Joint Committee shares the grave concerns that the relentless downward drive on prices – in some cases below the cost of production – threatens the very sustainability of many growers.
The Joint Committee is also conscious of the supports available at EU level for producer organisations (POs). The Committee believes that the Department of Agriculture and its agencies must play a proactive role in facilitating access to PO funding, which can help secure a vibrant indigenous fruit and vegetable sector.
The Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2014 sets out powerful new investigation and enforcement powers to help ensure fairness in the supply chain. The Joint Committee is calling for the new Grocery Regulations, which flow from this legislation, to rebalance the supply chain. As part of this process, it is calling for the newly established Competition and Consumer Protection Commission to take a robust approach to dealing with complaints, including the naming and shaming retailers found in breach of the Regulations.
Committee Chairman Andrew Doyle says: “On behalf of the Committee, I wish to warmly welcome yesterday’s public engagement with the IFA representatives. Committee Members have held a longstanding desire for this sector to place their concerns on the public record. We firmly hold the view that the Irish consumer, given a preference, will buy home-grown, fresh, sustainable fruit and vegetable produce so it is vital that every effort be made to ensure the sector can compete on a level playing pitch.”
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Paul Hand,
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Committee Membership:
Chairman: Andrew Doyle, (Fine Gael)
Deputies: Tom Barry (Fine Gael); Pat Deering (Fine Gael); Martin Ferris (Sinn Féin); Martin Heydon (Fine Gael); Michael McNamara (Labour); Éamon Ó Cuív (Fianna Fáil); Willie Penrose (Labour Party); Thomas Pringle (Independent)
Senators: Michael Comiskey, Denis Landy, Paschal Mooney, Mary Ann O’Brien, Brian Ó Domhnaill, Pat O’Neill