By Nick Turner

Published at 14:11, Wednesday, 09 May 2012

A NEW watchdog will have the power to regulate supermarkets to ensure farmers get a fair price for their produce.

The new Groceries Code Adjudicator Bill will see an independent adjudicator protect suppliers by ensuring that large retailers treat them "fairly and lawfully" and "break down the climate of fear" by allowing farmers to raise complaints confidentially.

It prevents large retailers - those with a UK groceries turnover of more than £1 bn - from varying their supply agreements retrospectively and to pay their suppliers within a reasonable time.

Westmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Farron has been campaigning for an adjudicator for years and said the legislation will help rebalance the relationship between producers and consumers by forcing supermarkets to treat farmers fairly.

Mr Farron said: "I am absolutely delighted at the announcement and that Liberal Democrat ministers in government have ensured this legislation will go through in the next parliamentary session.

"It just goes to show that when a community, like the farming community, work together to build a campaign and fight for an issue that is incredibly important and will make a huge difference in the lives of such a vital group, fantastic things can be achieved.

"This is a terrific win for farmers across the country and will help to support many farming businesses through this difficult economic period, and start laying the groundwork for us to begin to put together a strategy for feeding Britain in the future."

It comes as milk processors Wiseman Dairies, Arla and Dairy Crest, have all cut their standard contract milk prices to farmers by 2 pence per litre. Mr Farron said the "exploitative" move would affect up to 300 dairy farmers across the country who could lose up to £20,000 each year as a result of the reduction in prices, potentially devastating many farming businesses.

Published by http://www.in-cumbria.com