Suppliers could cut us off if we don’t hike then cut prices: Woolworths

April 23, 2026 — 1:22pm A senior Woolworths manager has conceded price hikes and subsequent drops promoted as discounts were pre-planned at the request of product suppliers and claimed that if the supermarket didn’t comply, it risked losing the products from its shelves. Sam Woodcock, who has worked in management roles across Woolworths for more than nine years, appeared as a witness before the Federal Court in Sydney on Thursday as it heard the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) case accusing Woolworths of fake discounts via its “Prices Dropped” program. Sam Woodcock appeared as a witness on Thursday. Sitthixay Ditthavong The allegations, which have similarly been levelled against Coles, centre on a claim that the supermarkets misled shoppers by artificially increasing a product’s price for a short period, then slightly lowering it and advertising it as a discount, despite the new price being higher than the regular price it was sold at before the brief spike. On Thursday, Woodcock, who served as category manager of breakfast cereals, muesli bars and spreads between April 2021 and September 2022, was asked about changes in the price of a box of 12 Carman’s brand fruit and nut muesli bars. The bars were priced at $9 between January 2021 and late March 2022 before they were increased by 22 per cent to $11, a price which lasted for just 32 days. Then, they were placed on the “Prices Dropped” program and sold for $10. Woolworths advertised the new price with the scheme’s red and white promotional shelf stickers which showed a comparison to the $11 price. The ACCC has argued this was misleading, because the muesli bars were advertised as being on discount at $10 despite being $1, or 11 per cent, more expensive than 33 days beforehand. The $10 price and promotional labels were advertised to shoppers for the next 374 days, compared it to its short-lived former $11 price tag. The ACCC’s lead barrister Michael Hodge KC enters Federal Court. Edwina Pickles Under questioning from the ACCC’s lead barrister Michael Hodge, KC, Woodcock conceded all the various fluctuations in muesli bar prices had been decided and agreed to at the same time as part of a planned trajectory to land on discount. He said Carman’s approached Woolworths with a proposal to increase prices for a range of its products temporarily before placing them on the supermarket’s “Prices Dropped” discount program. “Each product had a specific request, but there was an overall proposal [from Carman’s],” Woodcock said. After Hodge finished with his questions, Woolworth’s lead barrister, Robert Yezerski SC, asked Woodcock about how the supermarket could respond to such pricing change proposals from suppliers. Woodcock said if Woolworths didn’t accept changes such as those proposed by Carman’s, the supermarket risked angering grocery manufacturers who could ultimately cease supplying their goods. “Essentially, if a supplier proposes a cost price increase to be effective from a certain date and we don’t accept that as a retailer, there’s a risk that if we haven’t accepted and actioned it in our system that a supplier will choose not to supply us that product anymore,” he said. Woolworths’ former chief commercial officer Paul Harker leaves the Federal Court in Sydney. Oscar Colman “And I have to say, in Woolworths at that point in time, ensuring that we had product on the shelf was an absolute requirement,” Woodcock said. Woodcock’s appearance followed a tense morning before Justice Michael O’Bryan, who has repeatedly appeared frustrated at the ACCC’s line of arguments and questioning of witnesses. When Hodge was questioning Woolworths’ former chief commercial officer Paul Harker earlier on Thursday about timelines of when the supermarket changed its internal rules for how long a product’s price should exist before it can be changed, O’Bryan interjected. “We’re now following a path, I’ve got no idea where we’re going or why we’re going there,” O’Bryan said. It follows earlier comments expressing doubt over the case the ACCC was pursuing, when O’Bryan interrupted Hodge’s opening remarks on Tuesday to suggest the watchdog was setting up a “straw man” and not directly responding to Woolworths’ case. Central to O’Bryan’s concerns have been whether each sides’ arguments are over-intellectualising what goes through an average shopper’s mind as they walk down an aisle, and whether the “was” price displayed as the more expensive comparator on the “Prices Down” promotional labels conveyed to customers that it was a genuine price. The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning . Elias Visontay is a National Consumer Affairs Reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Connect via email . From our partners