Supermarkets that treat their suppliers unfairly should be punished by a newly-created watchdog, according to a new poll.
On the survey commissioned by Traidcraft and the Cross Cutting Group, and conducted by YouGov, 81% of consumers said an ombudsman should be created to penalise unacceptable practices.
According to research by the National Farmers’ Union, Traidcraft said some supermarkets regularly make retrospective changes to contract terms, charge suppliers for every customer complaint and confirm orders with less than 34 hours notice.
And 81% of respondents said they think this behaviour is unacceptable, while 59% said they would switch supermarkets if they found where they do most of their shopping was adopting these practices.
36% of consumers believe nothing happens when supermarkets are found guilty of bad practice.
Senior policy manager Fiona Gooch said: “With the vast majority of shoppers wanting an ombudsman to curb supermarkets which exploit their power by intimidating suppliers, supermarkets ignore this message at their peril.
“And we urge shoppers to make their views known to their local supermarket and MP.”
MPs have shown their concern that efforts to introduce an ombudsman have stalled in recent months, after opposition from multiples, including Asda.
Last April, the Competition Commission said that a watchdog should be created following a two-year inquiry into the grocery industry.
Economist Professor Roger Clarke said that if an ombudsman is not introduced soon then another inquiry could cost more taxpayer money. He added that small shops could also be hit.
He commented: “The cost of introducing the grocery ombudsman is likely to be very small compared to the benefits that are likely to follow and paradoxically, a watchdog would not only benefit consumers, but also serve the needs of supermarkets.”
