Greens Propose $25bn Plan to Make Supermarkets Public

Max Chandler-Mather, a former Greens member of parliament who now heads the Greens Institute, has pitched an ambitious $25bn plan to nationalise 200 supermarkets currently operated by Coles and Woolworths, Australia's two dominant grocery chains.

The proposal, which echoes similar ideas put forward by New York politician Zohran Mamdani, calls for the federal government to purchase and run a network of publicly owned stores designed to compete directly with the existing private duopoly.

Chandler-Mather argues that the scheme would ease cost-of-living pressures by offering consumers a lower-cost alternative for everyday groceries. He contends that Coles and Woolworths have used their dominant market position to keep prices higher than necessary, a claim that has fuelled ongoing public debate about supermarket pricing in Australia.

Under the plan, the government would take ownership of 200 stores at an estimated cost of $25bn, creating a state-run chain intended to challenge the pricing practices of the two major retailers. Supporters of such models argue that publicly run businesses, freed from the pressure to deliver profits to shareholders, can pass savings directly on to customers.

The approach draws explicit inspiration from Mamdani's platform in New York, where he has floated comparable publicly owned grocery initiatives as a way to tackle rising food costs in American cities. Chandler-Mather's version adapts this concept to the Australian context, where Coles and Woolworths together hold a commanding market share of grocery sales.

It remains unclear whether the plan has gained traction beyond the Greens Institute or whether it will be formally introduced as legislation in parliament. The proposal has not yet been addressed by the major parties, nor by Coles or Woolworths themselves.

Critics of supermarket consolidation in Australia have long argued that the dominance of a small number of large chains limits competition and keeps prices elevated for consumers. Whether a nationalisation scheme of this scale could be practically or politically achieved remains an open question, but the proposal adds a bold new idea to the ongoing national conversation about grocery affordability and corporate power in the retail sector.