ACCC getting extra funds in supermarket crackdown

Australia’s supermarkets have been issued a fresh warning amid a major funding boost to help crackdown on “dodgy” price practices.

The federal government is giving Australia’s consumer rights watchdog a massive funding boost to help it crackdown on dodgy supermarket pricing practices.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will get an extra $30m to help it further probe the conduct of supermarkets after the regulator announced last week it was suing Woolworths and Coles for allegedly misleading customers on discounts.

“Today we are announcing a crackdown on dodgy supermarket practices,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday.

“We don’t want to see ordinary Australians, families and pensioners being taken for a ride by the supermarkets, and we’re taking steps to make sure they get a fair go at the checkout.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australians are ‘being taken for a ride by the supermarkets.’ Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

The new funding is aimed at bolstering the ACCC’s ability to proactively search for misconduct and investigate supermarkets’ reasonings for pushing up prices.

Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers will also spearhead talks with state and territory governments to reform planning and zoning regulations in a bid to prevent land banking and create more spaces for others in the sector.

Mr Chalmers said the moves would “help to make pricing fair, boost competition and make sure that there are significant consequences for supermarkets who do the wrong thing.”

Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the government’s moves will ‘boost competition’. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

The ACCC alleged last week both major supermarkets pushed prices up by at least 15 per cent before slapping them with promotional discount stickers often at prices higher than before the hike.

The watchdog said Woolworths did this for 266 products in its Prices Dropped promotion over a period of 20 months, while Coles did it for 245 products in its Down Down promotion across 15 months.

Following the ACCC’s announcement, the Albanese government released an exposure draft of a new mandatory grocery code that could hit major supermarkets with multimillion-dollar penalties for serious breaches.

The ACCC is accusing Woolworths and Coles of hiking prices to create the illusion that they dropping them. Picture: NewsWire

The new code aims to bolster protections for suppliers, introducing stronger dispute resolutions provisions and guards to prevent suppliers from supermarket retribution.

There would also be expanded protections for whistleblowers to ensure their identities are kept secret.

A government-commission report revealed Aldi was by far the most affordable supermarket chain, beating Coles, Woolworths and IGA by up to $28.16.

More than 104 visits to supermarkets across the country by CHOICE mystery shoppers found the same basket of groceries cost $50.79 at Aldi, $66.22 at Coles (or $69.91 without specials), $68.70 at Woolworths (or $68.37 without specials), and $78.95 at IGA.

The ACCC will hold public hearings with supermarkets later this year.

Originally published as ACCC getting extra funds in supermarket crackdown