UK price-fixing inquiry may affect Glanbia

Glanbia could face a fine of several million euro next year over an allegation of price fixing against a former dairy subsidiary in the UK.

The Cheese Company (TCC), a former Glanbia subsidiary, was one of 10 supermarkets and dairy processors in the UK "provisionally" found by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to have colluded in setting retail prices of milk, butter and cheese in 2002 and 2003. This alleged price fixing is estimated to have cost consumers some £270 million (€385 million).

Glanbia retains the potential liability from the OFT investigation, even though it sold its remaining 25 per cent stake in TCC to Milk Link in December 2006 for a total consideration of £47.2 million.

In 2004, Glanbia sold a 75 per cent stake in the business to Milk Link for £79.9 million.

The OFT, which is headed by Irishman John Fingleton, said it hoped to conclude its investigation by the end of 2008. The regulator said fines of "hundreds of millions of pounds" could be imposed on the companies involved if it finds that competition law was breached.

The companies involved will be given the opportunity to respond to the OFT's findings before the competition body makes its final determination.

Glanbia said it would consider the OFT's provisional finding carefully and "respond in detail".

The Kilkenny-based company said it was "currently too early to conclude" if the OFT's provisional finding will lead to "a formal decision against TCC, or to the imposition of any financial penalties against it", in this case.

"TCC believes that it acted in good faith at all times in relation to the supply of cheese in the UK market," Glanbia said.

The OFT's provisional finding said the supermarkets and dairy processors had shared "highly commercially sensitive information, including details of the levels of price increases" over a two-year period.

The other companies involved are supermarket groups Asda, Morrisons, Safeway, Sainsbury, Tesco and dairy companies Arla, Dairy Crest, Lactalis McLelland and Wiseman.