Is government intervention needed to break up NZ's supermarket duopoly?

An investigation into the supermarket majors is underway as a merger of hundreds of stores around New Zealand fails to satisfy our competition watchdog.

Ahead of its final decision later this year, the Commerce Commission said that a merger of Foodstuffs North Island and Foodstuffs South Island would effect “significant structural change” in the sector – and it continues to have concerns around competition.

It’s all while the commission’s investigating after Consumer NZ lodged a complaint claiming supermarkets were engaging in ‘misleading pricing’.

So, what will all of this mean for you, and the price of your weekly grocery shop?

Today on The Front Page, we’re talking all things supermarkets, first with NZ Herald reporter Kate MacNamara, and then with independent consultant, Ernie Newman.

Since this episode was released, a Foodstuffs spokesperson has pointed out there is no precedent for the government forcibly breaking up a private company. 

"Telecom voluntarily split into two as a result of the National Government's Ultra-Fast Broadband initiative."

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You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network.

Host: Chelsea Daniels
Sound Engineer: Paddy Fox
Producer: Ethan Sills

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