Traction gaining for ombudsman to protect Irish food producers

The IFA is calling for an independent ombudsman to oversee the new retailer regulations which come into effect on 30 April. The new regulations will tighten the rules for retailers on payment terms and marketing charges.

Following a meeting of the IFA’s retail project team last week, the organisation's national chair Jer Bergin said the appointment of an independent ombudsman by the next government is essential to ensure the new regulations are effective.

A system similar to that in the UK, which is paid for by the retailers themselves, [to be] put in place here to regulate the behaviour of retailers

He is calling for "a system similar to that in the UK, which is paid for by the retailers themselves, [to be] put in place here to regulate the behaviour of retailers."

According to Bergin, the IFA is concerned that the new Competition and Consumer Protection Commission will not be sufficiently focused on supplier interests to pursue complaints effectively.

The organisation wants to ensure that suppliers who are subject to unfair trading practices by retailers can have "confidential and effective recourse to an independent ombudsman to investigate and pursue their case", said Bergin.

Tesco breaches UK law

In January, UK groceries code adjudicator Christine Tacon told Tesco to introduce significant changes to practices and systems after finding that the company had breached a legally binding Groceries Supply Code of Practice to protect groceries suppliers. During a thorough two-year investigation, she found that the retailer had acted unreasonably when delaying payments to suppliers, often for lengthy periods of time.

"The recent findings by UK groceries code adjudicator Christine Tacon against a major retailer reaffirm IFA’s call for a similar independent ombudsman in Ireland to regulate the grocery retail market," Bergin said.

Under the new retail regulations in Ireland, retailers will have to provide transparency and clarity in their dealings with suppliers, through contractual relationships. However, the IFA believes the regulations do not go far enough because they stop short of banning below-cost selling and providing for the establishment of an independent ombudsman.

"To break the stranglehold of the supermarket"

IFA deputy presidential candidate Nigel Renaghan is also strongly pushing the idea of an ombudsman to protect food producers.

At two separate IFA election hustings in Cork last week, Renaghan told the audience he was in favour of an ombudsman "to break the stranglehold of the supermarket".

Fellow candidate Pat Farrell agreed that there is not enough in the grocery regulations Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton recently brought in.

Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil has committed to the establishment of a national food ombudsman, and to working for new fair price legislation at EU level if the party gets elected into government.

In its farming and rural Ireland manifesto, the party said it will “amend consumer law” to ensure the appointment of a food ombudsman to protect primary producers.

In the UK, the groceries code adjudicator is an independent arbitrator to oversee the relationship between supermarkets and their suppliers. It ensures that large supermarkets treat their direct suppliers lawfully and fairly, investigates complaints and arbitrates in disputes.

The adjudicator enforces the groceries supply code of practice, the UK's equivalent to the new grocery regulations in Ireland. Its role includes:

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Grocery goods regulations to come into force in April

New grocery regulations tighten rules on payment terms and marketing charges