13,2 million euros fine for price fixing

The German companies Hans-Willi Böhmer and Kartoffel-Kuhn have been jointly fined €13,2 million by the German Bundeskartellamt. The trading companies have made prohibited price agreements for the purchase and sale of potatoes and onions.

The 2 companies have according to Andreas Mundt, chairman of the Bundeskartellamt, made agreements for years about the sales prices to retail company Metro Group. These agreements were made between 2005 and May 2013. In addition to the sales price, the purchase prices of potatoes and onions for the small packaging market were also discussed.

Purveyors to the Court
Böhmer supplies potatoes and onions nationwide to Metro Group, which sells them through 2 chains: Cash & Carry and Real. With 5 locations, Böhmer is the number 2 in Germany when it comes to sorting and packing potatoes and onions. Kuhn is only active in the southwest of the country and is much smaller.

The company cooperated with the investigation, which means that the fine is lower for them, according to the Bundeskartellamt. Both companies still have the option to appeal the ruling. The final fine has not yet been determined.

Margin was fixed
The companies purchase raw materials themselves and wash, sort and pack independently. The product is also partly stored itself. There was weekly discussion about uniform purchase prices for both potatoes and onions. The quotation to Metro Group was also based on this. Irrespective of fluctuations in the purchase price, a constant selling price was used that hardly changed.

In 2013, the Bundeskartellamt started an investigation into price agreements in the German potato and onion trade. Other pending cases have been dropped with the conviction of Böhmer and Kuhn.

Niels van der Boom

Niels van der Boom is a senior market specialist for arable crops at DCA Market Intelligence. He mainly makes analyses and market updates about the potato market. In columns he shares his sharp view on the arable sector and technology.

n.vanderboom@boerenbusiness. Nl

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