Competition Authority, March 24, 2021, No. 21-D09
In a decision dated March 24, 2021, the Competition Authority sanctioned 3 French manufacturers of industrial sandwiches sold under private label for collusion.
The sanctioned companies had developed and implemented, between September 2010 and September 2016, a non-aggression pact aimed at dividing up volumes and customers and agreeing on prices.
The practices of this "sandwich cartel" were uncovered thanks to the leniency program, which allows companies involved in a cartel to disclose its existence to the Competition Authority and, under certain conditions, obtain full or partial exemption from financial penalties. In this case, the first company to apply for leniency received a full exemption from any financial penalty.
This decision illustrates the need for companies to independently determine their commercial policy and to refrain from participating in any contact, direct or indirect, with their competitors, in order to exchange information on the prices they plan to offer or the strategies they intend to pursue.
