Action Needed To Combat 'Food Imbalances'

Immediate action is needed at the EU level to combat "unfair and anti-competitive" practices across the food supply chain, according to Fianna Fail.

Liam Aylward, MEP, said the message coming from a debate in the European Parliament on imbalances in the food supply chain suggested that farmers were being 'squeezed' between unfair practices from input companies and exploitation from large multiples and retailers.

Speaking during the debate, Liam Aylward, MEP for Ireland East and Member of the European Parliament Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development criticised the European Commission and competition authorities for not engaging with the issue.

"The EU talks about equality, fairness and equal competition in its policy areas, yet in agriculture, one of the cornerstones of the EU, farmers are continually denied their right to a fair return for fair work," he said.

Mr Aylward said total input costs for EU farmers climbed by almost 40% between 2000 and 2010 and the upward pressure on these prices will rise further as a result of resource scarcity and the growing demand for food.

"On the other side of the process, retailers have used their dominant position to implement a number of tools such as 'hello' money, 'pay to play' money, payment delays and shelf space pricing which cut away at the returns for farmers and bind them in unfair and unbalanced conditions.

"It is clear that primary producers are being ‘squeezed’ from both sides of the food supply chain."

(DW)