Three supermarket break-up plans put grocery prices in election spotlight

National has put supermarket competition at the centre of its Election 2026 pitch, promising to split Foodstuffs into two nationwide chains if it wins office. The Greens want to create a publicly owned KiwiMart and NZ First has already backed a separate Foodstuffs break-up.

But for Pacific families dealing with the cost of putting food on the table, the bigger question is whether any of the competing plans will actually make a difference at the checkout.

That focus is particularly important for Pacific voters. The PMN News-Horizon Research Pacific Issues Election Survey found 67 per cent of Pacific respondents identified the cost of living as an issue that would influence their vote, making it the top priority for the community ahead of the election.

National's proposal, announced today, would separate Pak'nSave from New World and Four Square, creating three major nationwide chains alongside Woolworths.

The plan would first go through a six-month Commerce Commission review. If the Commission recommends separation, National says it would legislate to make it happen.

Finance spokesperson Nicola Willis says the change could eventually save households up to $1320 a year, with modelling estimating grocery prices could be around 3.5 per cent lower in the first year and about five per cent lower after six years.

But the analysis also warns the benefits depend on what happens to costs after Foodstuffs is split, with the economists describing their findings as indicative rather than definitive.

Green MP Teanau Tuiono told William Terite on Pacific Mornings the party’s KiwiMart plan is aimed directly at the cost pressures facing families.

“It's a cost of living crisis, but it's also a cost of greed crisis,” he said.

Listen to Teanau Tuiono's full interview below.

Tuiono said the Greens had been focused on their own policies after a fresh poll showed the party up four points to 14 per cent.

The Greens announced KiwiMart last week as a publicly owned supermarket chain they say would provide another competitor to the existing market.

Tuiono said the policy could have a direct impact on Pacific communities.

“The policy that I think would have the most direct impact on Pacific communities, because we are the highest unemployed of any ethnic group in the country,” he said.

He said KiwiMart was designed to help bring prices down and make life more affordable for Pacific families.

National's plan is similar to a proposal announced by New Zealand First in April to "break up Foodstuffs into two nationwide co-operatives based on brand: one for New World and Four Square, and another for Pak'nSave".

NZ First leader Winston Peters has claimed National has copied his party's policy, while ACT leader David Seymour has previously warned against forcing companies apart, saying it could affect investment.

The debate comes as the Commerce Commission says Foodstuffs and Woolworths still control more than 80 per cent of the national grocery market, with little change in the overall level of competition.

The shake-up however, would depend on a six-month review by the Commerce Commission into whether the split would actually benefit shoppers.

Coalition partner ACT opposes forced separation outright, with leader David Seymour warning the sector: "If you start forcibly dividing companies, the first thing that happens is that they won't invest."

ACT opposes forced separation, with David Seymour warning: "If you start forcibly dividing companies, the first thing that happens is that they won't invest. Photo/RNZ/Mark Papalii

For Pacific households, the debate goes beyond supermarket structures.

Food is one of the biggest weekly costs for families, meaning the real test of the competing election promises will be whether they lead to more choice and lower prices where it matters most: at the checkout.