Written question asked by Daniel Kawczynski (Conservative) on Thursday, 23 November 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 27 November 2006. It was answered by Barry Gardiner (Labour) on Monday, 4 December 2006 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Milk

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with the chairman of the Office of Fair Trading to discuss the price paid by supermarkets for milk.

Answer: Competition concerns in the dairy sector and supermarkets relations with their suppliers were the subject of discussion when Lord Bach met with the chairman and chief executive of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) on 9 February this year. Competition concerns were also discussed when the chief executive of the OFT attended a meeting of the Dairy Supply Chain Forum, chaired by Lord Rooker, on 19 July.Supermarkets' relations with their suppliers is one of the issues that the Competition Commission is looking at as part of its investigation into the grocery market. On 2 June, Lord Rooker wrote to the Commission to suggest that it also considers the impact of supermarket buyer power on the long term viability of suppliers.

Secondary information