Mr Walshe also stated that with every one job in eight in the Irish economy linked to farming the Government can no longer stand back from damage being inflicted on our €18bn food and drinks industry by retail wars which are geared only at delivering more profit for supermarkets. He said that the retailers are out of control in terms of their pursuit of profit through market share and downward price pressure and that farmers cannot produce food at below the cost of production. The Code of Practice must include a ban on below cost selling of food, and ensure there is equity in the share out of the consumer price between all of the stakeholders in the food chain.

Mr Walshe finally added that in order to be effective there must be strong enforcement of the Code of Practice which will require the appointment of an Independent Retail Ombudsman with powers to initiate investigations, arbitrate on disputes and apply sanctions to retailers who breach the code. In addition, he said the ombudsman must be in a position to investigate abusive buying power without the individual supplier having to be identified.

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