Woolworths has cancelled a ''critically important'' meeting between Australian farmers and 40 international buyers, the growers' peak body claims, in retaliation for their public protest against being made to pay for a campaign starring Jamie Oliver.

AusVeg said on Wednesday morning – the day Fairfax Media reported Woolworths was charging farmers to cover the cost of its ''Jamie's Garden'' campaign – the supermarket declared it had cancelled a visit from Asian buyers at its Sydney distribution centre.

Cancellation believed to be a retaliation: AusVeg launched a public protest over a 40c-a-crate "Jamie Oliver levy".

''I think it’s petulant behaviour, I think it’s churlish, it’s mean-spirited,'' Richard Mulcahy, chief executive of AusVeg, said. ''It's fairly obvious it's linked to the adverse media they're receiving about Jamie Oliver.''

Woolworth confirmed the meeting had been cancelled. Its communications manager Russell Mahoney said the ''buyers were unavailable''.