Supermarkets and retailers have warned a authorities ban on grocery worth gouging might backfire, criticising the transfer as unprecedented and unfair for concentrating on solely the most important chains.
The Albanese authorities will announce on Sunday that it might ban worth gouging in Coles and Woolworths, following a damning report from the competitors watchdog earlier this 12 months that exposed Australian supermarkets had been among the many most worthwhile on this planet.
Coles and Woolworths make up about three-quarters of the grocery store sector.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) launched an inquiry into the large supermarkets in 2024 after they had been accused of failing to cross on financial savings to customers throughout a cost-of-living disaster, however didn’t show the businesses had been worth gouging.
Under the amended Food and Grocery Code, supermarkets should solely cost an inexpensive margin on merchandise. The new guidelines come into power on July 1, 2026.
“We’re cracking down on grocery store worth gouging to assist Australians get a greater deal on the checkout,” Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Assistant Minister for Productivity and Competition Andrew Leigh stated in a joint assertion.
“The ban will prohibit very massive retailers from charging costs which are extreme when in comparison with the price of the provision plus an inexpensive margin.”
The ACCC will get a $30 million funding increase to police the brand new laws. As has beforehand been reported, Coles and Woolworths will face most penalties of $10 million if discovered to have breached the code.
Australian Retail Association chief Chris Rodwell warned regulating revenue margins risked making staples costlier, and grocery costs had been largely pushed by enterprise prices, resembling vitality and freight.
“The ACCC Supermarkets Inquiry discovered no proof of extreme pricing,” he stated.
