Aussie Owned slams supermarkets not supporting Australian brands

Supermarkets are facing increasing pressure to support Australian brands, with brand certifier Aussie Owned hitting out at chains placing local products out of reach. Take our poll.

Aussie businesses are pleading with supermarkets and politicians to give locally-owned products a fair go as overseas companies dominate store shelves while their battler brands are hidden.

Local brand certifier Aussie Owned is pressuring the government to step in and supermarkets to overhaul the promotion of Australian products.

“Nine times out of ten you’ll see the Australian brands right down the bottom or right up to of the shelves, it’s a market power scenario where the foreign brands have such incredible money behind them … they end up with the prime space,” Aussie Owned General Manager Kristy Ponting said.

“As a consequence the Aussie businesses without that foreign investment behind them end up with what‘s left, which are those hard to reach spots.”

Ms Ponting and a slew of local businesses are supporting a campaign to get supermarkets to specially mark products on the shelf made by Australians by simply adding a docket or a sign next to the price.

“It’s something supermarkets could easily integrate to their existing practices and they would get a pat on the back from consumers. Also the government could very easily put forward recommendations that Australian products are clearly identified on supermarket shelves.”

Mark Caine, a spokesman for Massel, an Australian owned family company famous for stock cubes, said competing foreign brands dominated supermarket shelves while the company only got a few spaces: “ I can never sell enough to up-end that imbalance, We think there should be preference given to an Australian Owned brand because the profits are staying on shore.

“There should be some kind of protection similar to the film industry where 30 per cent has to be Australian content … there should be legislation for Australian countries in the supermarkets.

“Take Campbells for example – would it matter if two of their six shelves were on the bottom? People would still find it, but our products would get a better go.”

Fiona Franz unpacking groceries with her sons Saxon, 8, and Lincoln, 6. She says she’d happily buy local but sometimes it isn’t easy to tell what comes from overseas. Picture: Tim Hunter

Tuckers Natural founder Sam Tucker said his brand, which makes snacks and crackers, would get a massive boost if consumers could quickly identify them as an Australian.

Their products are swamped by walls of Arnotts products.

“If we can simplify it down to one identifier, that purely Australian made and owned awareness on the shelf, and if that could be mandated we wouldn’t be unhappy about that … I’m certainly not critical of the supermarkets but it would be great to have more support to aid the consumer making the choice.” he said.

The government and supermarket chains are facing increasing pressure to support locally-produced products.

Fiona Franz is a time poor Northern Beaches mum and says it’s not always easy to support Australian products and businesses.

“If the supermarkets introduced a way to easily spot the locally owned products the shoppers would support it,” Ms Franz said.

“The supermarkets promote fresh food as Australian made but forget everything else in the other aisles … they don‘t get the same attention.”

Going into bat for local brands

Australian Owned is challenging politicians to go to bat for local businesses - literally.

On Wednesday cricket legend Glenn McGrath will captain the Aussie team in the Unfairest Cricket Match to show the barriers local brands face against big foreign brands in the major supermarkets.

Complete with shorter bats, bigger stumps and an unfair umpire, the Australian made team will face against ‘The Rest of the World’ team given every advantage to win.

“As the official Team Captain of the ‘Australian Owned’ team, I will be stepping onto this pitch to stand up for the homegrown and owned ‘Australian Owned’ team to help make a difference,” Mr McGrath said.

Former Australian cricketer Glenn McGrath is going into bat for local brands. Picture: AAP

“Whenever and wherever I can, I do my best to buy Australian owned products.

“It‘s a small and simple change that my family and I have implemented into our day-to-day lives.

“It came as a real shock that only one in five products in supermarket shelves are Australian owned.

“When finding this out, I knew that it was so important that I made an active effort to support Australian owned brands and rally for our leaders to make a change to something that impacts all Australians.”

Australian Owned has invited Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and a slew of influential Australians to step up to bat and see just how disadvantaged local products area.

The public are invited to support the match on Wednesday the 16th November at Kensington Oval.