The Centra chain of independent retail stores, a part of the Musgrave Group, reported a 24 per cent rise in turnover to £355 million (€451 million) last year. There are now 297 independently-owned Centra stores in the Republic and Northern Ireland, with 34 stores added to the group in the last year. They account for around 5.5 per cent of the grocery market in the Republic. Despite the turnover rise the grocery symbol group warned against scrapping the Groceries Order, saying it would lead to higher prices for consumers. "Ironically, price wars and below-cost selling only serve to put local suppliers out of business and threaten the non-affiliated independent retailers who can't withstand long-term price wars. They are a strategy to reduce competition," said Mr Eoin McGettigan, Centra chief executive, at the Centra National Conference in Killarney yesterday.