Dairy Farmers of Canada supports establishment of a 'Grocery Code of Conduct'

Dairy Farmers of Canada welcomes with great interest the ‘Grocery Supply Code of Practice for Canada’ proposed by Food, Health & Consumer Products of Canada (FHCP) and Empire Company Limited. If adopted, a code of conduct of this nature would bring greater balance to supplier-retailer relationships, improve competition in the grocery retail environment, and foster greater collaboration throughout the food supply chain.

In recent years, some retailers have increased pressure on suppliers by imposing arbitrary and unreasonably harsh fees and penalties and making unilateral changes to supply agreements. If left unchecked, these practices could hamper product innovation, reduce product variety, and generate unnecessary costs, with a negative impact on dairy farmers, processors, independent grocers and consumers alike.

Countries such as Australia, Ireland and the United Kingdom have already recognized the benefits of adopting such codes of conduct, which promote transparency, predictability and openness in the food supply chain.

Dairy Farmers of Canada is supportive of this kind of proposal and expresses its desire to participate in any future consultations on this issue.

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