Dutch parliament wants ban on huge food discounts

A majority in the Dutch parliament wants to crack down on huge discounts for food products. They say such are unacceptable and are looking for a ban, as is already the case for alcohol.

Alcohol as inspiration

A majority of the parties believe that huge discounts on food products prevent farmers from getting fair prices. They also think that such prices also cause food waste, and therefore have asked the cabinet to create rules to prevent prices of agricultural products from dropping too much. Only when the best-before date is approaching, sharp price cuts should still be possible, as that helps to prevent food waste rather than cause it.

The law could find inspiration in the 2021 law on alcohol, which stipulates that alcoholic drinks cannot be discounted by more than 25 %. Politicians also point to France, Belgium and Switzerland, which already have rules in place to combat price gouging on food. The cabinet now says it will investigate.