Confused about Market Trading Hours? We are too!

Author: Kate Cook

STOP for a moment and ask yourself one question. Do you know what the trading hours are at the market?

If you’re scratching your head, you’re not alone. Retailers are confused, wholesalers are confused, Regional Buyers are confused, and even the people whose role it is to enforce the rules seem confused about this issue.

Some months ago the Melbourne Market Authority asked market users to complete a survey on their preferred market hours. The results were thoroughly inconclusive, with a third of market users wanting a later market, a third wanting an earlier market, and the final third wanting things to stay the same. So why is it that when two thirds of all market users wanted either a later market or no change at all, the MMA decided to pursue the opportunity to open the market earlier?

If you step away from how it has been executed, the simple idea of consistent opening hours, 3:30am every day, was not actually a bad idea as it simplifies the issue of when the market can be accessed. But this is not what market users asked for, and then just when these new changes were settling in, the decision to offer an Early Buyers Pass at a cost of $10,000p.a for this trial was also introduced. It seems we’re now back to square one, and there is still confusion over who is allowed into the market at these earlier hours and who is not.

The purpose of this article isn’t to weigh-in on the debate about market hours. In fact, Fresh State is often asked what our stance is on this issue and the answer is very simple, we represent our members and our opinion reflects their views.

The problem that is clear with the current situation is the poor level of communication from the MMA. Who exactly are the ‘approved’ early buyers? If there is a list of those with the paid permit, then publish it. And there is a whole new debate about whether the Early Buyers Pass process is fair or not, especially considering that some simply can’t afford it.

There even seems to be confusion within the ranks of the people supposedly enforcing these rules, as market users are seeing mixed messages and actions that change from week to week. Why does it appear that these rules are being inconsistently enforced, and that many buyers are still entering the market at the new hours without an Early Buyers Pass? Do Regional Buyers wanting to access the market early need an Early Buyers Pass? We don’t know.

THE REAL ISSUE IS ABOUT THE LACK OF CLARITY AND POOR ENFORCEMENT OF THE MMA’S OWN RULES.

The irony of this situation is that the majority of wholesalers in the market wouldn’t have an issue with Regional Buyers coming in early to buy from them, and in fact, if the rules were made clear, the whole experience of Regional Buyers coming to the market could be made even better.

In fact, the Regional Buyers issue is an interesting one. On the application form for the Early Buyers Pass there is an option to purchase as a ‘Regional Buyer’, and by the MMA’s own rules this pass is available to them. However, it is our understanding that the Market Relations Officers were instructed by Plenary, on direction from the MMA, to allow Regional Buyers access to buy at 2:30am which is clearly against the current rules. In another twist, apparently this rule has changed yet again in the last few weeks.

While this example highlights the issues around just one specific group of buyers, there are many problems with this new policy which clearly shows that the real issue is the lack of clarity and poor enforcement of the MMA’s own rules.

Whatever the MMA finally decides on these and many other questions, there needs to be a fair trading environment at the market for all users. We won’t put up with the approach of ‘turning a blind eye’ for some market users and enthusiastically enforcing these new rules against others, it is time that the market is given clarification from the MMA on the changed market hours and who can and who can’t access the market early. Having one set of rules that is well thought out, communicated, and implemented fairly is essential. We are sure that all market users, wholesalers, retailers, providores, and growers would agree that this isn’t an unreasonable request or expectation.

So, what are the trading hours of the market? No one really knows, but we are hoping that there is a light at the end of the tunnel after all the changes and trials that we are being subjected to.