More than 200 Coles and Woolworths supermarkets would be nationalised, and hundreds of government grocery stores opened, under a $25bn plan being put forward by former Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather. Channelling New York mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plan for publicly owned grocery stores, Chandler-Mather, the boss of the party’s thinktank, the Greens Institute, wants to use new forced divestiture laws to take over major supermarket sites and three distribution centres. The government would fund another 424 new supermarkets and 10 distribution centres, taking about 20% of the market share of commercial operators for the new non-profit network. r says the new stores – dubbed Fair Go Grocers – would save consumers as much as 22% on the average shop, or $60 per week for a four-person household.
Heavy discounts would be put in place for essentials including fruit and vegetables, bread, milk and meat. A statutory authority would be established to set prices each month, as well as minimum wholesale rates for suppliers. Its members would include experts in supermarket operations, nutrition and food science, and farming.
The federal government would pay for capital costs including land, construction, and acquisition, and stores would be located in areas of the highest need. After an initial $25.1bn price tag over five years, Chandler-Mather says the stores would be self-funded and not require additional taxpayer cash. By comparison, the federal government currently spends about $24bn each year on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
And just like Medicare and public schools, it’s time we had a public option for food.” The proposal is similar to Mamdani’s plan for five city-owned and subsidised grocery stores, one in each of New York City’s boroughs, opening by 2029. Last month a local business group sued the Democratic Socialist mayor, arguing existing small grocery stores would be unable to compete. The New Zealand Greens have a plan to nationalise 120 supermarkets and establish a new publicly owned chain called KiwiMark.
The Greens Institute commissioned pollsters YouGov to test public support for the proposal last month, with background on Mamdani’s plan for government-owned stores that cut out profits made by private corporations. Voters were asked: Would you support or oppose publicly owned supermarkets being tried in Australia? A total of 84% said they strongly supported or somewhat supported the idea, while 16% somewhat or strongly opposed the idea.
Support was strongest among voters aged 25-34 (88%), among Greens voters (96%) and women (88%). Newly elected Greens leader David Shoebridge, under pressure to spur enthusiasm and attention for the party, has welcomed the proposal, saying the Greens should be focused on improving the material conditions of individuals, the environment and community. The Greens allege Labor’s new laws banning supermarkets from excessive pricing are ineffective and have not resulted in lower costs for consumers.
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