UK: Wales wants supermarkets watchdog

Source: newswales.co.uk 

Farm leaders today welcomed a call by Wales Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones for the appointment of an Ombudsman to regulate supermarkets.

Elin Jones said: ' Having a good relationship between retailers and suppliers in the grocery market is important. I feel it would be of benefit to all, suppliers and retailers, if there was an independent body to monitor and regulate the sector.'

' I have already met with representatives of the main supermarkets to encourage the promotion of Welsh meat in their stores and I intend to continue working with them. 'It is clear that people want to buy fresh produce and it is in all our interest that there are measures in place to protect all parties.'

"The Minister's demands are exactly what we have, on many occasions, been urging the Westminster Government to introduce over the past few years," said Farmers' Union of
Wales president Gareth Vaughan.

"Our latest call for more urgent action to curtail the far-reaching problems caused by supermarket power was made just over a month ago after the Competition Commission
published a provisional report of their inquiry into the grocery market

"Although the findings were nowhere near as hard hitting as we hoped, it was a damning report in the light of the massive power supermarkets now have over the daily lives of every UK resident.

"It noted the buying power of grocery retailers and intermediaries is influencing farm profitability and drew attention to the risks this could pose for the future of
the UK agriculture industry.

"Those are the reasons why we have expressed concerns regarding excessive supermarket power, and have repeatedly called for a regulator or Ombudsman to police the relationship between the large retailers and suppliers."

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