Supabarn Supermarkets
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 3 sources
Family-owned supermarket chain based in Canberra.
Until Supabarn Supermarkets has the farms and labour hire firms behind its food checked independently and publishes what it finds, it can't show that the people who grow and pack it are paid what they're owed.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It sells fresh and own-brand food from farms and labour hire firms it hasn't shown it checks. That alone means a poor grade until it takes steps to check them.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 2 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Met: Respects worker rights
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: Farm and labour hire checks published
Red flags 3
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Hidden supply chain: no certification, independent audits or supplier list
- Red flag: Sells food from farms and labour hire firms it doesn't check
- Red flag: Fails its category's raw-material check (means Lacks transparency)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
Supabarn Supermarkets names some of the countries it makes in: Australia. The rest is shown as where own-brand and fresh food is usually grown or made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| ChinaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| New ZealandUsual for the industry | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| ThailandUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| ItalyUsual for the industry | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| VietnamUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| MalaysiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: fresh and own-brand food relies on Australian farms and meatworks where labour hire firms have underpaid migrant workers, and on imported ingredients such as tomato paste, palm oil and seafood linked to forced labour.
- Being made in Australia doesn't count towards a living wage or audit here: Australian farm and meat work, where a NSW parliamentary inquiry, the Fair Work Ombudsman and the supermarkets' own audits have found labour hire firms underpaying migrant workers. It would need to publish its suppliers or have them independently audited.
- Relies on fresh and own-brand food from farms and meatworks where labour hire firms have underpaid migrant workers, paid them in cash and charged them for crowded housing, often out of sight of supermarket audits. It hasn't shown any checks on the farms, meatworks and labour hire firms behind its fresh and own-brand food, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does.
Research notes Supabarn is a family-owned Canberra chain run by the Koundouris Group; it sold five Canberra and four Sydney stores to Coles in 2015. In a 2008 submission it said it buys through Metcash and direct from manufacturers and growers. No modern slavery statement, supplier list, farm checks or labour findings were found, and the countries where its food is grown or made aren't stated.
Sources and actions
Sources 3
Show all 3 sources
- Koundouris Group submission to ACCC (5 March 2008) · search the archive · Koundouris Group owns and runs Supabarn; uses Metcash as wholesaler and buys direct from manufacturers and growers (2008)
- Watchdog to review Supabarn takeover (SBS, 19 June 2015) · search the archive · Coles to buy nine Supabarn stores; Koundouris family founded Supabarn
Published by Supabarn Supermarkets or its owner
- Supabarn Supermarkets · search the archive · Official site; family owned and operated; focus on fresh and local
Company details
- Owned by
- Koundouris Group
- Headquarters
- Australia
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Supabarn Supermarkets ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/supabarn, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Other supermarkets brands
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Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Supabarn Supermarkets.