Fruit and vegetable wholesaler Green Endeavour Pty Ltd has paid a penalty of $13,750 after the ACCC issued it with an infringement notice for an alleged contravention of the Horticulture Code of Conduct.
The ACCC alleged that Green Endeavour, trading under the business names of Suncoast Fresh and Fruitlink, breached the code by failing to prepare, publish and make publicly available the terms of trade on which it was prepared to trade with growers.
Fruit and vegetable growers and traders have certain rights and responsibilities under the code, which is intended to improve transparency in transactions and provide a fair and equitable dispute resolution procedure.
“Our investigation arose after compliance checks identified that Green Endeavour had not published its terms of trade on its websites,” ACCC Deputy Chair Mick Keogh said.
“Growers need to be able to compare the terms and conditions offered by different traders to make an informed decision about the best business to sell their produce to.”
“The ACCC’s regular audits and compliance checks are an important step in assessing the effectiveness of, and compliance with, the Horticulture Code. This penalty is a timely reminder that we will take appropriate action when we identify non-compliance with the code,” Mr Keogh said.
“Ensuring compliance with mandatory industry codes of conduct in the agricultural sector is an ACCC compliance and enforcement priority. After the release of updated guidance on the Horticulture Code last year, the ACCC has moved from a compliance and education focus to enforcement.”
Background
The Horticulture Code is a mandatory industry code prescribed under the Competition and Consumer Act. The current version of the code came into full effect in 2018.
The key requirements of the code include that horticulture produce must be sold under a compliant Horticulture Produce Agreement, and traders must provide growers with statements for the sale of their produce and traders publish their terms of trade. In 2022, the ACCC released updated guidance on the Horticulture Code.
The ACCC’s enforcement options include administrative resolutions, court enforceable undertakings, infringement notices and, for certain breaches, commencing civil penalty proceedings.
Note to editors
The payment of a penalty specified in an infringement notice is not an admission of a contravention of a mandatory industry code or the Australian Consumer Law.
The ACCC can issue an infringement notice when it has reasonable grounds to believe a person or business has contravened certain provisions in industry codes.