It's breakup season: Labour, National clash on tearing up grocery duopoly
New Zealand's Labour and National parties have both proposed breaking up the country's supermarket duopoly to increase competition. The plans involve forcing major chains to separate their retail and wholesale operations to lower prices for consumers and independent grocers.
Why it matters
This represents a significant shift toward aggressive market intervention in New Zealand to address high food costs and lack of retail competition.
<p>Labour will force Woolworths and Foodstuffs to split their businesses if elected, separating their supermarket chains from the wholesale arms that supply shops — in a bid to give smaller grocers a better shot at competing.</p> <p>The two big operators would have to run their wholesale arms independently under the plan, creating what Labour calls "Foodstuffs Wholesale" and "Woolworths Wholesale". </p> <p>Independent grocers would get a guaranteed right to buy stock from any wholesaler on "fair terms", small grocers such as Four Square operators would be freed from restraints of trade the party says keep prices high, and there'd be stricter rules on supplier fees.</p> <p>The announcement <a href="https://www.1news.co.nz/2026/09/16/national-to-pursue-paknsave-and-new-world-break-up/" target="_blank">comes days after National</a> said it would "pursue" breaking up Foodstuffs so New World and Four Square became one chain and Pak'nSave another. </p> <p>But it would only do so if the policy passed a Commerce Commission review and approval.
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