The European Commission is to look into the possibility of anti-competitive practices in the food supply chain, the Irish Times reports.
Yesterday (May 27th) the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture was told that the review will mainly focus on the dairy and pig sector.
Tom Moran, secretary general of the Department of Agriculture and Food, said that the issue of retailers pushing down prices was a key talking point.
Minister for Agriculture Brendan Smith said: "Underlying the recent debate is the increasing concentration of retail power in the hands of a few large supermarket chains.
"This is an international phenomenon which has fundamentally changed the balance of market negotiating power in the food chain."
He added that although a "reasonable balance" must be struck, it "should not be done at the expense of a viable European agri-food sector".
In recent weeks, there have been complaints that the price of milk is pushing dairy farmers to the limit.
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