Your eye gets caught by the dried apples slices and pistachios but your child, sitting in the trolley, sees the Percy pig sweets. The queue is moving slowly, how well do you resist? A commentary by Deborah…
Bleuurgh, gross! Get it on Facebook quick.
Nick Saltmarsh
Our awareness of food waste is increasing all the time, yet we continue to throw away vast amounts of produce even when we don’t need to. We are getting tired of being lectured on our habits so its time…
A new grocery code of conduct provides new rules for a sector subject to price wars, but will not solve all market problems.
Lukas Coch/AAP
Coles, Woolworths and the Food and Grocery Council have released a draft industry code of conduct to help govern their relationships with suppliers. The code will be “voluntary” under section 51AE of the…
“With one of the most concentrated food retail sectors in the world dominated by the supermarket duopoly, the barriers to making it easy to buy local food in Australia are significant. It is time for Australia…
Ready, steady, go - but not not everyone likes traffic systems.
Last Wednesday was a good day for those of us who have been campaigning for years for more understandable food labelling. The UK Government announced their final recommendation for front-of-pack nutrition…
A report released yesterday by the Centre for Retail Research (CRR) outlines a very bleak future for the UK high street. A fifth of shops are expected to close in the next five years, with 316,000 job…
Coles’ ten-year deal with farmers’ cooperative Murray Goulburn will have significant consequences for the dairy industry.
Image from www.shutterstock.com
Earlier this month, Coles and Murray Goulburn announced a ten-year deal that is likely to have significant consequences for the dairy industry, as well as Australia’s grocery sector more broadly. Starting…
A dramatic decrease in the availability of sow stall pork and caged eggs has been driven by consumer concern.
AAP
Australia’s two largest grocery retailers, Coles and Woolworths, have vowed to dramatically decrease the availability of pork and egg products sourced from intensive farming systems. The decision was made…
Long supply chains are common in the food industry, which is mostly concerned with cutting costs and “just on time” management.
AAP
Back in September 2012, an Irish food safety inspector noticed some discrepancies in the labelling and packaging of some frozen meat brought in by a small import-export company. By January 2013, the scandal…
Proving that Woolworths and Coles engaged in unconscionable conduct with their suppliers will be a lengthy and difficult task for the ACCC.
AAP
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has declared open season on Coles and Woolworths. In an unusual step, the ACCC’s chairman, Rod Sims, discussed his organisation’s current investigations…
The ACCC has put suppliers’ claims of supermarket bullying under the spotlight, but the magnitude of the duopoly’s supermarket power should also be addressed.
Image from www.shuttershock.com
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced last week that it is investigating claims that Coles and Woolworths are bullying suppliers. The issue is serious, but the ACCC investigation…
Market share: Two companies in Australia control more than half of the country’s bread and bakery business.
Flickr/looseends
The Federal Government’s current national food plan process is heavily dominated by business interests. It is built on flawed assumptions that the market can provide the solutions that our broken food…
Prominent signage of unit pricing could help consumers make more informed choices about their grocery shopping.
AAP
In the confusing world of brands, package sizes, advertising and price promotions, what can help consumers make informed choices? Unit pricing – the price per standardised unit of measure introduced in…
Read the second part of our In Conversation between Stephen King (left) and former ACCC head, Graeme Samuel.
AAP
Welcome to part two of our In Conversation between the former head of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Graeme Samuel and Monash’s Professor Stephen King, also a former competition regulator…
Graeme Samuel and Stephen King: two of Australia’s most senior regulators sit down together for The Conversation.
What happens when two of Australia’s best known former competition regulators sit down together and talk about the world? A wide-ranging discussion on the state of Australia’s political debate, xenophobia…
Is the “waterbed effect” - where manufacturers attempt to recoup discounts given to large retailers by raising prices for smaller competitors - an issue in Australia?
AAP
When a major retailer uses its countervailing power (or “market muscle”) to negotiate better terms from suppliers, should policy makers be concerned? In Australia, the debate has focused on dairy farmers…
Pharmacy retailing is the last frontier for large supermarket chains.
Flickr
Australia’s two major supermarket retailers, Coles and Woolworths, already have vested interests in fuel, convenience, liquor, hardware, hotels, apparel, general merchandise and technology. While they…
Are fruit and vegetable producers being caught up in the pricing war between Coles and Woolworths?
Supplied
Amid tough trading conditions and intense competition, Coles has fired the latest salvo in its ongoing supermarket war with Woolworths, announcing it will reduce the price of some fruit and vegetables…
The claim of “free to roam” is being challenged by the consumer regulator.
Christmas is coming, which means consumers are out looking for great deals to fill stockings and feed the family. And for retailers and manufacturers, the temptation to add “spin” to their marketing is…
The budget shopper is alive and well - but what of the “ethical” shopper?
AAP/Woolworths
In 1954, American consumer behaviour academic, Gregory Stone identified four different types of consumers. Consisting of 150 in-depth interviews, Stone’s research found there was an “economic” shopper…