Call comes as Ottawa and Quebec led effort for joint federal-provincial action.   Ottawa—As the federal and Quebec agriculture departments work on a strategy for dealing with the impacts of Canada's grocery chain concentration, they've been handed a timely reminder of why it's needed. With five retailers controlling more than 80 per cent of grocery sales, the food supply system is at risk, Denise Allen, President and CEO of Food Processors of Canada (FPC), she told the Commons agriculture committee. FPC is part of a long list of groups calling for action to stop the large chains with sticking their business costs on suppliers. “This incredible imbalance has created an environment where retailers can arbitrarily impose increasing and unrealistic financial pressure on food producers and processors,” she said. The fees and fines the chains resort to “will diminish Canada's ability to attract investment in food production and innovation, reduce our ability to compete effectively against large multinationals, eliminate selection and choice for consumers who wish to support local farmers and brands, and threaten our collective ability to protect our food sovereignty and security.” “Retailers such as Walmart and Loblaws have adopted unfair and unethical business practices where our food producers and processors struggle to maintain output to ensure Canadians enjoy what they come to expect in their food system—safety, selection and quality products from Canadian brands they enjoy.” “The scale of the retail fees and fines is both unprecedented and untenable,” she said. “The recent fees imposed by Walmart and Loblaws companies alone will cost suppliers approximately $1 billion per year and will ultimately pay for these retailers' infrastructure costs, while no return on investment or growth is provided to suppliers.” Ottawa and Quebec are cochairing an interprovincial committee looking at how the situation could be best addressed. The general consensus is that the provinces have the lead role in dealing with grocery chains but Ottawa can apply strong support. Allen said a proposal for a grocery code of conduct “would affect the change needed to establish fairness and accountability in grocery retail practice in Canada.” Codes in the UK, Ireland and Australia “have been proven to improve competition and support greater collaboration in the broader supply chain. A code “would encourage good-faith negotiations between grocery retailers and their suppliers, reduce punitive penalties and create greater transparency and accountability.” It's “the best way to address the inequities in the food supply chain that threaten investment and increase price inflation for the consumer. A legally binding and enforceable code to monitor, establish and enforce compliance is recommended.” She said the threat of retailers' “escalation of fees and fines places Canada's primary producers at risk, as food processors purchase in excess of 40 per cent of Canada's farm gate output, for which they add value and sell both domestically and internationally.” The pandemic has shown a spotlight on “our reliance on imported food products leaves our population without access to vital processing infrastructure and allows for the potential of food disruptions as borders thicken and concerns over protectionism increase.” “Retailers have aggressively and unilaterally dictated their terms, with no mechanism to allow suppliers to voice their concerns. Moreover, the disadvantage at which retail fees and fines place the suppliers extends to primary producers in a way that will see a reduction in farmgate output and consumer selection of food choices and a decrease in Canada's export capabilities.” Alex Binkley is a freelance journalist and writes for domestic and international publications about agriculture, food and transportation issues. He's also the author of two science fiction novels with more in the works.