News

The food reformulation programme focuses on improving the health of New Zealanders by reducing sugar and salt levels in popular food products, estimated that 760 tonnes of sugar per annum have been removed from targeted food categories.

Over 250 NZ-made products have been recognised for their quality, receiving medals in the 2024 Outstanding Food Producer Awards.

The Commerce Commission Grocery Team has released Unit Pricing Guidelines for grocery retailers. These guidelines aim to help grocery retailers understand the unit pricing obligations. Physical stores must comply by 31 August 2024 and online stores must comply by 31 August 2025 at the latest.

The Commerce Commission will issue a further Statement of Issues on proposed Foodstuffs merger, which will be published on the Commission’s case register in due course and will outline the Commission’s potential competition issues with the proposed merger following its initial investigation.

New requirements for the labelling of allergens in food come into force on 25 February 2024. These changes will help people find allergen information on food labels more quickly and easily, so they can make informed and safe food choices. 

The Commerce Commission has published the Grocery Supply Code: Checklist for Suppliers. This is important guidance from the regulator, the document acts as a “checklist” for grocery suppliers to review new or amended agreements received from retailers and ensure compliance with the provisions of the Grocery Supply Code.

The majority of member responses we received shared similar concerns the increase in competitive market share was more likely to increase operational centralisation and reduce negotiation leverage, with a concern that there would be more at stake leading to increases in the cost of doing business for suppliers and increased prices for consumers. 

Attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea are impacting global trade flows.

Here is the latest information from the Grocery Commissioner, and if you're in the process of being offered a Grocery Supply Agreements it's important to read, as the Commission are developing a Grocery Supply Code Checklist to help suppliers and legal advisors to determine if agreements are compliant with the provisions of the Grocery Supply Code.  

A new anonymous “whistleblower” tool launched by the Grocery Commissioner is designed to lift the lid on practices and conduct that may be hampering competition in the $25 billion sector.

ARL Program Update – New Zealand kerbside standardisation changes in PREP

The Commerce Commission has published their Statement of Preliminary Issues on Foodstuffs North Island and Foodstuffs South Island merger application.

A new consumer action group is taking aim at the two supermarket giants and promising to lobby aggressively for lower grocery prices, the NZ Herald reports.

NZFGC is pleased to announce two appointments heading into 2024 – Holly Cotter as General Manager and Donnell Alexander as Health and Regulatory Manager.

NZFGC has met with the Grocery Commissioner and Commerce Commission officials to discuss a range of issues.

Woolworths NZ’s profits dropped 52 per cent in the last full year, with rising costs pushing up operational costs for the grocery retailer, the NZ Herald reports.

A consortium of iwi is reported to be in advanced talks over setting up a new supermarket chain, initially with between 20 and 30 stores, to take on Countdown and Foodstuffs.

Supermarkets are now required to display unit pricing on grocery products.

A year of huge change in the grocery sector just got more interesting with Woolworths NZ’s announcement it is rebranding its Countdown stores back to the Kiwi icon Woolworths name.

Online grocery startup Supie says it is planning physical stores as it builds towards its goal of being a potential third major grocery retailer behind Foodstuffs and Countdown.