In the lead up to the next general election we will be looking at the background to potential candidates for the Agriculture/Horticulture Hot seat.
Here are some recent press statements and responses from Andrew Doyle TD Fine Gael Spokeperson for Agriculture, Fisheries & Food.
Supermarket €500k demand from Irish food suppliers shows Govt should accept FG Fair Trade Laws – Doyle
Supermarket €500k demand from Irish food suppliers shows Govt should accept FG Fair Trade Laws – Doyle
Further confirmation today that retailers are demanding sums of hello money of up to €500,000 from Irish suppliers is a clear signal that
Fine Gael’s Fair Trade Bill should be accepted by Government and implemented without further delay, according to the party’s Spokesperson on Food & Horticulture, Andrew Doyle TD.
“The contention of three suppliers that they are paying six figure sums to have their products stocked on supermarket shelves backs up many anonymous reports that
Fine Gael has received from anxious suppliers in recent months about unfair trading practices in the retail sector.
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Fine Gael’s Fair Trade Bill, published last August, not only outlaws illegal practices such as hello money but also provides for the disclosure of supermarket profits and a transparent statement of supply clearly showing agreements between suppliers and retailers.
“The Government has dragged its feet on this issue and has failed to date to introduce the code of conduct or establish the ombudsman promised to regulate the sector.
“There are 200,000 jobs dependent on tackling this issue and making sure producers have access to a fair trading environment. Ministers for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and Enterprise Trade and Employment need to take it seriously and put party politics aside to accept the
Fine Gael proposals.”
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Irish grown food supplies in jeopardy from supermarket price war, FG survey shows – Doyle Irish grown food supplies in jeopardy from supermarket price war, FG survey shows – Doyle
Fine Gael Food & Horticulture Spokesperson, Andrew Doyle TD, today (Thursday) released the results of a survey (available by clicking
here) responded to by 30 Irish food growers showing suppliers are being squeezed to breaking point by supermarkets while consumers are still being ripped off by massive margins on their shopping.
“My survey shows the balance of power has swung decisively towards supermarkets which control 88% of the fresh food market. Growers are squeezed to breaking point. Many are no longer getting the price they need to cover their costs and are suffering from the low prices on offer from supermarkets as well as demands for extra payments to benefit supermarkets’ margins. Consumers rightfully want good value and look for the cheapest price but if the result is putting local growers out of business the end result with be an importers monopoly with consumers paying an unfair burden of the cost.
“My survey revealed that the kind of payments and practices affecting fresh food suppliers include:
• Box rebates, or 2.5% to 5% rebates to buyer after every monthly payment to grower.
• Payments to cover special offers, from 10% to 30%.
• Personal payments and payments in kind to buyers, ‘Christmas money’ to buyers.
• Lump sum payment for two year contract.
• Long credit terms for buyer from four to 11 months.
• Cost of last minute cancellation of contract borne by grower.
“Abusive trading practices have been stopped by the Fair Trade movement in Africa and India – why can’t we do it in Ireland? We have to face the prospect that Irish growers and producers could be wiped out. The Government is failing to regulate the sector. First and foremost, they should adopt the
Fine Gael Fair Trade Bill which has now been published for seven months. Two hundred thousand jobs depend on their willingness to put party politics aside and act to create a fair trading environment.”
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“Time to reveal the facts on levels of retail profiteering” says FG Food Spokesperson “Time to reveal the facts on levels of retail profiteering” says FG Food Spokesperson
Andrew Doyle TD,
Fine Gael Spokesman on Food has called on the Government to back a
Fine Gael Private Members’ Bill which provides a mechanism to unlock the secret profits earned by the large retail grocery giants in Ireland. Deputy Doyle was speaking after the Farming Conference yesterday in the context of renewed criticism for the low or even negative margins for grocery suppliers and the rip-off prices for consumers.
“There is no doubt that the large supermarkets have demanded huge reductions in prices from suppliers of food products especially fresh food. These reductions have not been fully passed on to the consumer. The example of the 34% drop in farm gate prices for milk last year while the price of a litre of milk in the supermarket only dropped 3% in the same period shows the bulk of the profit being taken by the supermarket at the expense of the supplier and producer and also the consumer.
“As over 77% of the grocery retail sector in Ireland is controlled by three multinational supermarkets, there is an obvious risk of unfair trade practices. There have been many stories of abusive trading practices – told in confidence. However unless supermarket profit levels are publicised, we are not in any position to decide whether people here are being ripped off or not.
“It is a matter of particular interest that many of the retail chains go to inordinate lengths to conceal details of their profit and turnover.
“We recently saw a report of one of the major retailers taking a High Court action against the Central Statistics Office over an attempt to find out greater detail of the retailer’s turnover and operations. It is in the public interest that there should be full and complete details about the turnover of these companies being made public. The UK is considering obligatory disclosure and the EU Commissioner for Agriculture has promised action.
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Fine Gael has addressed this matter head on through our Food (Fair Trade and Information) Private Members Bill published in August. Under the
Fine Gael proposal, the Competition Authority would be obliged to carry out an annual review of competition in the retail grocery sector and use its statutory powers to seek details of turnover and profitability from any retailer with more than five stores operating in the Irish market.
“In the run up to the busy Christmas season it is important that the Government does not drift on this issue. I call on the Government now to accept the Food (Fair Trade and Information) Bill now and to implement it without further delay to ensure greater price transparency for consumers and suppliers in Ireland.”
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