Jamie Oliver responds to protest against Woolies levy

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver is aware of the storm of protest surrounding Woolworths’ moves to charge farmers for its latest fresh food campaign.

Vegetable farmers are angry the supermarket firm is charging them a new fee of 40¢ a crate to fund the Jamie’s Garden advertising campaign on top of an existing marketing levy. One large supplier told AUSVEG that it faced paying $300,000 over the six-week campaign, while many smaller struggling farmers said the extra charge squeezed their "wafer-thin" profit margins.

AUSVEG sent a letter to Jamie Oliver’s London office on Tuesday asking him to use his influence and compel Woolworths to remove the fee. They also asked him to “implore the retailer to refund growers’ contributions”, which they claim is well over a million dollars. Sydney Morning Herald – Read more…