Grocery watchdog receives hundreds of complaints over prices
A CCPC spokeswoman told Extra.ie: 'Of the 140 who contacted us about pricing in this sector, 61 focused on misleading/incorrect pricing, 27 raised issues around high prices or price increases. The rest were miscellaneous queries and reports about pricing.'
She said the numbers were 'very similar to the same period last year', when there were 168 contacts about pricing, 51 about faulty goods, and 45 about advertising. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has received 445 grocery complaints in the first six months of this year. Pic: Getty Images
The CCPC is to scrutinise pricing in the grocery retail sector at the request of Minister of State for Retail Alan Dillon, in an updated version of an analysis it completed in 2023.
The spokeswoman said the CCPC expects its updated analysis 'to be available in the coming weeks'.
Damian O'Reilly, a senior lecturer in marketing and management at Technological University Dublin, said he does not expect the CCPC to find evidence of price-gouging. Mr O'Reilly told Extra.ie: 'There's no evidence of excessive pricing in the market.
'The competition is quite strong in the markets, which benefits the customers. The supermarkets are making modest profits.'
This week, Retail Ireland, a subdivision of IBEC representing supermarkets, shot back at the suggestion of price-gouging. The group insisted Irish food inflation trends are below the EU average and blamed cost increases higher up the supply chain for swelling price tags on supermarket shelves.
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