Coles delighted many across Australia when it announced in March this year that it was raising the cost of the its own brand milk by 10 cents.
While a price hike usually draws criticism, the supermarket revealed that the money would be passed on to dairy farmers and milk processors.
Incredibly, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has claimed Coles hasn't been holding up its end of the bargain.
Instead of 10 cents per bottle, 3.5 cents was being sent to dairy cooperative Norco, who supplies Coles with its milk.
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ACCC chair Rod Sims said the move from Coles is outrageous.
"Coles allowed farmers, consumers and the Australian public to believe that its 10 [cents per litre] price rise would go straight into the pockets of dairy farmers, when the ACCC alleges this was not the case for Norco farmers," Mr Sims said.
Coles has agreed to pay the amount owed in full, which amounts to a whopping $5.25 million.
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"Accepting this commitment means that farmers will receive additional payments from Coles, with the majority of the money to be paid to Norco within seven days," Mr Sims continues.
"Court action would also have taken many months if not years, with no guarantee that any money would have been paid to farmers as a result."
Going forward, Coles has agreed to pay Norco the 10 cents per bottle as previously advertised.
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A spokesperson for the company released a statement, saying: "In order to avoid an unnecessary dispute and provide immediate much-needed support to Norco farmers dealing with the ongoing impact of drought and bushfires, Coles proposed the investment of an additional 7 cents per litre for two-litre and three-litre Coles brand milk purchased from Norco between April 1 this year and at least the end of June 2020."
While it has admitted to the issue, the Aussie supermarket giant has disagreed with the way that the ACCC framed the situation, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
Featured Image Credit: Coles