NOBODY, it seems, is going to do much to rein in the power of Australia's supermarket duopoly.
The greatest priority of governments looks set to remain the consumer and the deal they get.
The margins made back along the supply chain do not gather much political interest, despite a slowly building recognition of the need for sustainable farmgate prices in some sections of the community.
Other countries such as the US have tightly-controlled supply chains with margins monitored at every level.
Yet here, one-eyed, economic rationalism ideology reigns supreme.
It is a pretty easy one for politicians. Blaming the market is a lot easier than new regulations that could be hard to get right or tough politically.
At a Victorian level, both Deputy Premier Peter Ryan and Agriculture Minister Peter Walsh have shied away from changing any rules.
Ahead of the last election, they promised to "where necessary, seek to adapt state and federal laws to improve the domestic and international marketing capacity of food and fibre producers".
But both have recently reverted to the failsafe position that demand will drive opportunities, saying this will assist farmers by having more markets, and make them less reliant on supermarkets.
Federally, Regional Australia Minister Simon Crean said the answer to overcoming supermarket domination was "diversification".
He said Aussie Farmers Direct - an online selling and direct delivery company - was a good example.
"I just don't think the answer to these things just lies in regulation, I think it relies on different ways in which you compete, obviously the concentration of power is an issue that needs to be addressed, that is why we have the ACCC," he said. "But the best way to counter concentration is through diversification and new entrants."
When asked if the ACCC was too consumer-focused instead of also scrutinising the supply chain, he said it had to have a consumer-focus, "consumers want to know they are not getting ripped off".
So, it seems, neither side of politics is very interested in altering the concentration of power.
Perhaps supplying start-up companies such as Aussie Farmers Direct is the only real option for farmers wanting to circumvent the power of the big two.
