The executive who introduced the 'Woolworths, the Fresh Food People' slogan says Australian supermarkets should have a quota on imported stock, reducing margins to lend a hand to struggling producers.

Paul Simons steered the Woolworths ship during the 1980s, he spent 40 years working in a variety of supermarkets before being awarded the Order of Australia medal in 1991 for services to the retail sector. He now works as a farmer in New South Wales.

Mr Simons says tough times for farmers are not the fault of supermarkets, but of the Government. He says supermarkets have no choice but to bring in cheaper imported stock, and the Government must intervene if farmers are going to get back on their feet. Simons’ suggestion is for the Government to mandate a cap on the amount of imported stock, forcing supermarket chains to buy more actively from Australian agricultural markets. 

Supermarkets have not shown a lot of regard for suppliers of late; the ongoing milk war between Woolworths and Coles has reportedly seen 80 farmers forced out of the Queensland dairy industry in order for the stores to continue selling milk at $1/litre.