LAST week’s finding from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) that there was apparently “no evidence of coordinated misconduct” at the Barnawartha saleyards is indeed at the root of a much larger problem in the red meat processing sector.
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The Barnawartha incident was the catalyst and showed us that there was no level playing field in the Victorian livestock markets.
It’s baffling that all nine processors chose not to compete at the saleyards in February, yet the ACCC were unable to obtain sufficient evidence to make a case for prosecution.
The ACCC said last week in their report that : "There is a fine line between social discussions about industry issues on the one hand, and exchanging information in circumstances that may constitute an understanding between competitors on the other.”
In our opinion, if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck and smells like a duck, you can be pretty sure that it’s a duck and there is no fine line on whether or not the duck agreed to be a duck.
Following the Barnawartha incident, the VFF and NSW Farmers called for Senate Inquiry into the red meat processing sector. The lobby groups firmly demanded that that there were three key components to creating a fair market; Price transparency, Accountability and an Independent Governance Structure.
It showed us what happens when you reduce the number and diversity of competitors in a market - you reduce choice. Lack of choice led to the Barnawartha incident, it also led to the way Coles was able to deal with its producers as detailed in the recent ACCC Federal court case.
We can fight all we want but at the end of the day there is no regulatory body protecting the rights of producers. We are seeing this time and time again. It always stops with the farmer.
It is blaringly obvious that the current competition law is failing farmers.
This whole notion of “social discussion” has raised many questions for farmers. What is defined as a “social discussion” ?
What if all Australian livestock producers had a “social discussion” about the current social and financial environment they operate under and then it so happened that no livestock was sold for one month. Would the ACCC find evidence then? I would think so.
The review of the competition law needs to provide the Agricultural Enforcement and Engagement Unit with sufficient teeth to be truly effective.
Further, it clearly demonstrates that the agricultural industry has its own unique set of issues and should be treated as such.
