Detailhandel Nederland
Detailhandel Nederland, the Dutch Retail Association, represents the collective social and economic interests of the Dutch retailers.
ID: 22232504133-92
Lobbying Activity
Meeting with Diederik Samsom (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans) and EuroCommerce and Lidl
18 Feb 2020 · European Green Deal
Response to Towards an EU Product Policy Framework contributing to the Circular Economy
4 Jun 2018
Detailhandel Nederland, the Dutch Retail Association, represents the collective social and economic interests of Dutch retailers. The Association welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Commission’s Roadmap 'Towards an EU Product Policy Framework contributing to the Circular Economy'.
The Association represents the Dutch council for SME-retailers (MKB-Nederland), the Food Retail Association (Centraal Bureau Levensmiddelen), and the council of large retailers (Raad Nederlandse Detailhandel). As such the association speaks on behalf of 110.000 shops, which employ nearly 760.000 people and generate an annual turnover of more than euro 81 billion.
Please find our feedback in the attached file.
Read full responseResponse to Initiative to improve the Food Supply Chain
22 Aug 2017
Feedback of Detailhandel Nederland (Dutch retail Association)
• The starting point in any value chain should be the consumer and its interests. There can be no exemption in the case of food supply chain. It is therefore regrettable that the interests of consumers are missing from the European Commission’s analysis and are not taken into account in the proposed solutions.
• As retailers, we consider farmers as an important and indispensable part of the food supply chain. We can see added value in the European Commission taking measures in increasing transparency in the food supply chain and increasing the possibilities of farmers to cooperate. We do not see any added value in the European Commission proposing EU framework legislation for the (whole) food supply chain. We therefore do not agree with the proposed options 3) and 4). EU framework legislation on UTP’s will add unnecessary layers of red tape, bureaucracy and compliance costs for all market operators.
• The Dutch retail sector urges the European Commission to come up with solid factual evidence to back up the need for legislative action on UTPs. The argumentation that is currently used in the IAA, is suggestive and often based on subjective surveys. It would not fit the European Commission’s goals for Better Regulation and evidence based policy making, to take legislative actions primarily based on allegations of parties with vested interests to lobby for protection, while these parties haven’t provided factual evidence that UTPs are a widespread problem. It should be on the claimants to bear the burden of proof to that.
• In the Netherlands, we benefit from an agricultural sector with a high degree of cooperation and organisation, and a low dependence on EU agricultural support. What is not clear to us is how the prosed options regarding unfair trading practices will strengthen the position of farmers in the food supply chain. In general,the Dutch agricultural sector is not asking for EU legislation on UTPs and more interested in cooperation between partners in the supply chain to develop and market distinctive food products, which could be sold at a premium.
• Companies in the Netherlands that suffer from unfair trading practices, have ample opportunities to take action based on civil law.
• It is clear that in order to ensure fair and constructive trade relations, commitment is needed from all partners in the supply chain. The Dutch food supply chain has successfully launched a Code of Conduct on Trading Relations in September 2013. The Code incorporates the 10 principles of Good Practice as laid down in the European Supply Chain Initiative. There is a dispute settlement procedure within the Steering Committee Trading Relations (consisting of farmers, manufacturers, retailers) to deal with potential conflicts. The pilot project on Trading Relations, offers the opportunity to lodge complaints anonymously through the sectoral trade associations. So far, no complaints have been lodged yet through this platform.
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