NFU President Peter Kendall has called on EU and North American farming to campaign for tough and effective measures to deter and punish supermarkets who would abuse their power. Mr Kendall used the example of influence exerted by large retailers in the UK to illustrate the need for action. He welcomed Copa Cogeca's efforts to implement an EU code of practice.  image expired

Speaking at the 35th annual North American and EU Agricultural Conference in Warsaw on Tuesday, Mr Kendall explained how the abuse of power by supermarkets was an international problem and encouraged farming groups from around the world to adopt an international approach to combating inequitable practice by supermarkets.

Mr Kendall’s comments were made whilst co-chairing a session on how the food chain can provide a better income for farmers. He said, “Farmers are the poor relations of the food chain, not just in Britain, but across the developed world. But that has got to change. We must ensure that supply chains deliver a fair share of what consumers pay for food to primary producers.”

Kendall’s comments come after the NFU slammed the EFRA Committee’s decision to inhibit the power wielded by a supermarket ombudsperson; a role which will be created to enforce the Grocery Supply Code of Practice, which British farmers have said needs to be stricter to prevent retailers from illegally exploiting their dominant position. The committee ignored many of the NFU’s recommendations for the new role, including the power to issue fines and the use of whistleblowers and third parties to gather evidence.

UK farmers feel supermarket squeeze more acutely

He said, “We are probably ahead of the rest of Europe in prescribing the medicine to deal with retailer abuse, but that it is only because we are also ahead of the rest of Europe in the extent of the problem we’re facing.

“Even with the progress that has been made, and the prospect of legislation in the reasonably near future, there is still a lot of work to do to ensure that the watchdog we have been promised has real teeth, and isn’t just a flea-bitten old mongrel, that wags its tail every time it’s patted on the head by one of the big four supermarkets.

“That means allowing third parties, like farming organisations, to make complaints on their members’ behalf, so as to preserve anonymity and prevent victimisation, and it means giving the watchdog the power to impose big fines, if naming and shaming proves an insufficient deterrent.

He pledged to continue campaigning and lobbying the government as the legislation on the adjudicator’s role is drafted and goes through Parliament to ensure that the ombudsperson can effectively protect farmers when the role is created.

In Europe, farmers’ organisation Copa Gogeca is working towards the development of a pan-EU Code of Practice to prevent the abuse of supermarket power and ensure a more equitable relationship between farmers and retailers in the bloc.