Consumer group CHOICE has welcomed the ACCC's supermarkets inquiry final report and the Government's in-principle support for its recommendations.
"People continue to be worried about the cost of groceries, with 84% of Australian households concerned about the cost of food and groceries. So, we're pleased to see the Government's in-principle support for the ACCC's recommendations. Addressing confusing promotions, shrinkflation and the lack of price transparency will make a big difference for consumers at the supermarket," says CHOICE CEO, Ashley de Silva.
"The ACCC's report confirms this is a highly concentrated market, with the major supermarkets appearing to be among the most profitable in the world during a cost of living crisis. This is why it's so important that we shine a light on prices and shrinkflation, regulate promotions, and make it easier for consumers to get value for money. We need to fix the power imbalance between supermarkets and consumers and price transparency will help us do that." says de Silva.
On regulating confusing specials:
"CHOICE is pleased that the Government has given in-principle support to tackle promotions that make it hard to know if you're getting a discount or value for money," says de Silva.
"Our 2024 research showed 1 in 4 people found it difficult to identify if certain supermarket labels represented a true discount or not. Sometimes labels claim a discount, but don't specify how much or note the previous shelf price, making the claim impossible for consumers to verify. Introducing minimum information requirements on price displays will help stop supermarkets obscuring endless price increases," says de Silva.
On introducing shrinkflation notices:
"Last year, CHOICE identified 15 supermarket products that had reduced in size, with the price remaining the same or increasing. Consumers deserve more information when shrinkflation occurs, and the recommendation to introduce shrinkflation notices will help everyone make better-informed decisions while shopping," says de Silva.
On improving price transparency:
"To make informed decisions, consumers need good information. The recommendation to require supermarkets to publish prices in-store and online, and make it easier for price comparison tools to access pricing information, will help consumers compare and shop around to get the best value," says de Silva.
Sign the petition for fair, transparent grocery pricing: www.choice.com.au/FairerSupermarkets
Editor's notes:
CHOICE Consumer Pulse January 2025 is based on an online survey designed and analysed by CHOICE. 1,024 Australian households responded to the survey with quotas applied to ensure coverage across all age groups, genders and locations in each state and territory across metropolitan and regional areas. The data was weighted to ensure it is representative of the Australian population based on the 2021 ABS Census data. Fieldwork was conducted from the 5th to the 18th of September, 2024.
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