User:B.j Shepherd/Australian milk retail price war hitting farmers

March 22, 2011

In a recent press release Coles has stated that it “will appear before the Senate committee hearings into milk pricing.” This milk war has been affecting areas of the dairy industry. According to Martin RasiniA Queensland dairy farmer, Lyn O’Connor, in a statement given to the Townsville Bulletin said that “if the arrangement stayed in place, there was likely to be a fall in the number of dairy farmers not only on the Tableland but also elsewhere in Queensland”

The Dairy Farmers Milk cooperative chairman, Ian Zandstra, has also made a statement to Business Day in which he said “only the big supermarkets will be grinning at the end of the day.” Independent stores have had to join in the fight. According to Georgia Loney, In a recent statement given to The West Australian independent Grocers Association President John Cummings said “many independent retailers had have little option but to offer cheap milk prices or risk losing business to the supermarket giants.”

Leon Gettler from management line said that the milk wars demonstrate that “this country has a ‘Noah’s ark economy’” two of everything. Two big retail chains, two major telco providers and two dominant airlines.” He admitted that we do “have four big banks.”  However he said his point was that “It demonstrates the power that these oligopolies have.”