WELLINGTON: The New Zealand government said on Wednesday it plans to introduce regulations that would force the wholesale arms of supermarkets to give small retailers fair access to their products.
The shift comes as New Zealanders grapple with inflation running at 7.3%, its highest level in three decades and follows other government measures aimed at improving competition in the sector which is dominated by just two companies.
Foodstuffs is a New Zealand-owned retailer cooperative, and Countdown is part of Australia's Woolworths Group Ltd.
The new rules, which still have to be passed into law, would require the wholesale arms of the supermarkets to sell groceries to rival retailers at competitive prices set by a regulator unless they voluntarily give access.
The government hopes this will mean that other retailers such as corner stores will be able to grow and provide products more cheaply.
"This work will improve competition and competition will improve prices," Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister David Clark told a news conference.
Other measures introduced in the last year by the government include curbs on land banking by supermarkets, or aggregating parcels of land for future sale or development, and the establishment of a regulator.
Both companies said later they were working on opening up access and were not opposed to the rules including the establishment of a regulatory backstop.
"Our priority that we have committed to is to find a commercial solution to provide wholesale access to retailers who aren't members of our co-operative," a Foodstuffs representative said in a emailed statement.
Spencer Sonn, managing director at Woolworths New Zealand which runs Countdown, said in a statement that Woolworths was actively working on a wholesale channel and was on the verge of signing up its first multi-store wholesale customer.
