Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the delegation. Mr. O'Connor made a straightforward presentation, which dealt specifically with a number of the issues of concern to us. There was a concern that the balance of power between producer, the processor and the retailer was not equal and there was a constant pressure on the producers to produce more for less.

There is a concern that the conditions being laid down in certain cases will eventually put producers, as opposed to processors, out of business. I am referring to the sector in general rather than a specific company. Let us take one simple product, liquid milk. Producers are concerned about the power and dominance of the multiples and the imbalance in the allocation of the share of profits in respect of the gross price paid by consumers. They have informed me that if this continues, milk production, particularly winter milk, will become unviable and we will eventually reach the point where there will not be sufficient winter milk available to supply supermarkets.

I have noted with interest a newspaper report this week indicating that it is intended to buy liquid milk from some of the large producers in the south east and export it to the United Kingdom, which is a much larger market than Ireland. I understand it is likely that the United Kingdom will have to import milk from this island, North and South. One hears that a significant amount of milk produced in the North is sold in the South - I have no problem with this, as I am not a partitionist - but producers of milk in the North look two ways, namely, south of the Border and across the sea to Britain. We may become dependent on Northern milk if Southern farmers pull out of the business because it is no longer viable on the basis that they cannot compete with their Northern counterparts because they have a lower cost base in the North. However, if a better price can be achieved subsequently in Britain on the basis that it is no longer self-sufficient in liquid milk, we will suddenly find ourselves without milk. This is only one example of the issues we are discussing because, as the delegates will be aware, there are constant complaints from vegetable growers, including potato producers, about standards and so forth. That is the background to this issue.

I compliment our guests on their straightforward presentation and welcome the clear statement that Aldi does not seek shelf money or hello money, special promotions and so forth. This was a major concern. Does Aldi operate in the United Kingdom? This is an important question because I understand a food ombudsman has been introduced in the United Kingdom to act as a type of referee.