ACCC counsel assisting Naomi Sharp,SC,had plenty of questions in the supermarket inquiry hearings,but supermarket executives skirted around the answers at times.
Former Woolworths executives including Brad Banducci returned to face questions from the competition watchdog about competition and pricing.
Aldi is Australia’s cheapest supermarket,and while it would like to put all its prices online,old website infrastructure is holding it back.
Shaping everything from meal choices to eco-conscious shopping trends,Aldi has evolved from shopper dockets and rewards to become a cultural institution at a time when our two majors are sinking.
The government is increasing its attention on the nation’s supermarket aisles,promising to make it easier to detect shrinkflation.
Just a week after the competition watchdog started legal action against Coles and Woolworths,the federal government is targeting their undeveloped supermarket sites.
In their duopoly,the big supermarkets have a licence to print money,which is premised on them not bleeding the Australian public dry.
The price of basic essential items such as milk,bread,eggs and nappies would be tied and linked to January 2024 wages so wages match price growth,the party says.
The new maximum penalties – up to $5 billion for Woolworths and $3.8 billion for Coles – are designed to protect farmers and food suppliers in their dealings with the big supermarkets.
Two major Australian fruit and vegetable industry bodies have accused Woolworths and Coles of engineering an oversupply of fresh produce to drive down prices.
Global companies like Nestle,Unilever,Coca-Cola and Mars face the possibility of a further inquiry into their role in rising grocery prices.