IFA President John Bryan has said he was looking forward to holding an early meeting with John Travers, who has been appointed as facilitator in the development of the Code of Practice for the grocery sector.

Mr Bryan hoped the appointment of Mr Travers by the Enterprise Minister Batt O’Keeffe would speed up the process of implementing legislation that would address the breakdown in the food supply chain. “There is a real urgency about ensuring equity for farmers in the food supply chain. There is a major imbalance between retailers and primary producers, who are being forced to operate below the cost of production. The role of the new facilitator should not delay the introduction of a statutory Code of Practice that must regulate the retail sector and bring about a change in the enforcement of competition policy.”

According to the IFA President the new statutory Code of Practice promised by the Government “must enshrine” the principle of fair trade for farmers in the grocery trade by providing a means for the more equitable share-out of the consumer price across the food chain. In particular, IFA is proposing that retailers are required to report details of their profitability in this country, as well as the outlawing of what it calls “unsustainable practices” including ‘hello money’, ‘pay to play money’, below-cost selling and forcing suppliers to fund retail price reductions. Other proposals cover proper labelling and the auditing of commitments to source Irish products.

Mr Bryan concluded that to police the Code and investigate complaints, the Government must also legislate for an independent Ombudsman, who would have the power to demand information from retailers while maintaining the anonymity and confidentiality of suppliers who make complaints.