Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Roads and Regional Transport) Share this | Hansard source

I would like to table a petition which has been found to be in order by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Petitions. This petition relates to the potential for negative impacts on the dairy industry, as a direct result of the decision by both Coles and Woolworths to push down the price of milk to unsustainably low levels. In addition to receiving the petition, which has more than 600 signatures, I had the opportunity to meet with concerned residents in Gippsland, representing Gippsland churches, who supported this call for a 'fair go' for local dairy farmers. This is, I acknowledge, primarily an economic and industrial issue—and some may argue it is a bit unusual for the churches to be directly intervening—but I believe it is also a classic case of a social justice issue and fighting for a fair deal for smaller players in the marketplace. I can understand why the local churches were so keen to be involved, with their parishioners, who understand the impact that this type of a decision can have on the dairy farmers in my community. My constituents can see through the marketing spin put forward by the supermarket giants that this is about the cost of living and giving a better deal for customers. It is all about market share and I believe the decision to sell home brand milk at $1 per litre has the potential to harm farming families and branded milk producers in the future.

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