The Ulster Farmers Union has welcomed the commitment in today’s Queen’s Speech to the establishment of an independent Groceries Code Adjudicator to oversee fair play in the food supply chain. The UFU said the commitment to the Adjudicator in the Queen’s Speech is good news for the farming industry as it is a step forward in ensuring fair play in the relationship between producers and large supermarket retailers.
UFU President Harry Sinclair said; “We have been campaigning for a Supermarket Adjudicator for many years to help redress the power imbalance between retailers and producers. Small producers have felt that Supermarkets have dominated the food supply chain; therefore ensuring fair play is critical to securing the future of local food production and ensuring local fresh food is available to our consumer market”.
Harry Sinclair added; “Establishing a Groceries Code Adjudicator is about creating a better functioning supply chain which rewards all players more fairly, encourages innovation, and ultimately benefits consumers. If Supermarkets are operating fairly then they will have nothing to fear”.
“What is important now is that a Supermarket Adjudicator is established and becomes operational as quickly as possible”.
