An experienced agronomist and grower accused the two largest supermarkets of using "bully-boy tactics" on growers to secure unfairly low farm-gate prices.
Her comments were aired during the first hearing of the Queensland government's select committee to examine increased supermarket prices chaired by Bundaberg MP Tom Smith on Monday.
Agronomist, cane and soybean grower Judy Plath was scathing in her remarks and said she was appalled at the treatment by growers of the leviathan retailers.
Ms Plath said supermarkets cared nothing for the future of farming or the mental and business stress their suppliers suffered which they caused with their "ruthless" approach to business.
"As an agronomist I have worked across many different crops over the past 25 years and I have seen first hand the bully-boy tactics the supermarkets have used on farmers," she said.
"It can be very disheartening to see good farmers pushed out or in a different direction if they cannot survive on what the supermarkets are paying them."
And while she felt the committee appeared genuine in its approach, Ms Plath said she believed the supermarket duopoly's habitual greed of gouging growers and graziers at the farmgate and customers at the checkout would not change unless legislation forced them to behave in a fair and equitable manner.
"I am concerned because the duopoly has been allowed for decades through successive governments to be so ruthless in their approach to farmers," she said.
"The government has not taken anti-corruptions laws seriously and this cannot continue.
"Now the Queensland government is grasping to find a way to make the situation fair for farmers and consumers, but if we want real changes then these legislative changes have to have teeth."
Bundaberg Fruit and Vegetable Growers CEO Bree Watson said she and three of the organisations directors, committee chair Jim Randall, Tina McPherson and Jamie Hansen attended the hearing.
"It was a good opportunity to shed the light on the complexities of the system," Ms Watson said.
"We also requested closed group sessions so growers who directly supply major supermarkets can have an opportunity to voice their experiences without fear of retribution.
"There's lots of people in the industry who told us point blank they wont go and speak if it's open to the public.
"If there had been a closed session today I would have had between six and 10 growers ready to share their experiences."
Ms Watson said if there had been an opportunity to brief the committee on how the industry worked such as input costs from agronomists to packaging, the hearing would have been more efficient.
"But the committee was interested and asked lots of questions," she said.
"We need to make sure we all working together towards a sustainable solution."
Ms Watson said some farmer said they had positive experiences with there supermarket clients.
"Some growers came forward to say they had a great relationship with their chains," she said.
"But many have not, so we encourage people even if they put together a couple of paragraphs and they can do so anonymously, about their experiences as they can still apply to participate in closed sessions."
Tinaberries founder Tina McPherson said the inquiry was a step in the right direction at addressing the issues farmers faced.
"There are a number of growers who said they would be happy to speak on the condition of animation in a closed session," she said.
"They want their voices heard but said cannot risk their business relationships by speaking publicly."
In the BFVG submission to the inquiry, Ms Watson said "the harsh reality of price disparity farmers were facing," was unacceptable and must be addressed.
After he chaired the Bundaberg hearing in his electorate which is one of the state's biggest food bowls, Mr Smith said he felt, "overall the event was positive."
"It allowed the voice of everyday Queenslanders to be heard," he said.
"We heard from local government, local growers, business representatives and passionate local advocates expressing what they observed from farmegate to checkout at the hands of the larger supermarkets," he said.
"We also heard from Judy Plath who spoke about how family friends had closed their farm due to industry pressures.
"And the farmer did not tell his mother for several weeks as he felt he had let the family down by allowing their farm to be squeezed by the large supermarkets.
"We also heard from Trevor Cross (Cross Family Farms in Bundaberg) who told us it cost him $1 to produce a punnet of tomatoes but because he was offered 70c a punnet by a supermarket, it was more economic for him to leave them on the vine last year.
"We know the farmers are getting screwed and pressured to lower prices and a responsible government must listen and make sure we are aware of these practices."
Mr Smith said at the Brisbane public hearings there would be opportunities for farmers to appear in a closed session in person or via video link if they were fearful of retribution by the leviathan retailers.
"We want them to have the security so they can put forward their side of the story," he said.
"We can use technology so they feel safe exposing any pressures from bi supermarkets unfairly driving down the farmgate price."
Mr Smith will chair hearings in Cairns on Tuesday morning and at Yarrabah in the afternoon.
"We need to hear first hand how indigenous communities are dealing with these issues of high supermarket pricing," he said.
The committee's report is due to be tabled in the Queensland Parliament by Friday 21 May 2024.
