ACCC gives bargaining power to South Australian dairy vendors

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has given South Australia's dairy vendors the right to collectively bargain with the state's major processors.

Vendors buy milk from processors and on-sell it to restaurants, supermarkets and private customers.

The ruling allows the South Australian Transport Workers Union to negotiate vendor contracts with National Foods and Parmalat for the next five years.

The decision comes as National Foods is the subject of a Senate inquiry into its contracts with dairy farmers.

The union's Alex Gallacher said the decision reduces the power of the processors, and allows more resources to be put into the side of the milk vendors.

ACCC chairman Graeme Samuel said there would be separate bargaining groups for each processor, and that participation in collective negotiations would be on a voluntary basis with no boycotts.

Vendors in other states will be watching the outcome of the negotiations and may look to introduce a similar system, in particularly New South Wales, said Gallacher.