Coles and Woolworths announced last week they were adding a 30¢ levy to the price of their home-branded, three-litre milk offerings in the short term, with the additional money going to support dairy farmers and drought relief efforts.
Woolworths said it would remove the additional amount at the end of October and introduce a «drought relief» milk range alongside its traditional offering, while Coles said it would keep its prices higher until the end of the year.
Both rejected the suggestion that the temporary price increase could negatively impact low-income households, noting consumer could still buy two-litre cartons for $2.
Unique perspective
When The Australian Financial Review contacted Choice on Friday about the potential impact on consumers, a spokesperson referred the inquiry to Australian Dairy Farmers, the diary industry’s national advocacy body.
Choice declined to say on Monday whether that decision was appropriate.
«Choice covers a wide range of consumer issues and is often asked to comment publicly, but we are not able to comment on everything,» Choice spokesperson Jonathan Brown said.
«We are happy to comment where we have current expertise and a unique perspective to offer. We’re not currently doing any work on the dairy industry.»
In 2016, Choice ran an information campaign through its social media platforms taking «an in-depth look into the Australian milk industry, exploring the $1 milk wars and how dairy farmers get paid for their milk».
Aldi stays put
The Financial Review contacted a range of consumer advocacy groups, none of whom wanted to provide comment either in favour or against the price increase, despite household budgets already under strain from rising energy and healthcare costs.
Global supermarket giant Aldi has refused to follow the two major supermarket chains, saying it would not hike the cost of milk for consumers as it had already «accepted price increases» from a number of its suppliers.
«At this point in time we do not intend on increasing retail prices for our customers,» an Aldi spokesperson said.
«We remain committed to playing our role in contributing to the ongoing success of the dairy industry and a long-term commitment to Australian farmers.»
The Productivity Commission has previously warned about «perverse incentives» resulting from propping up the agriculture sector during times of drought.
