Risk of price hikes if chicken business deal is allowed

Kronfågel Holding AB, which is the biggest actor on the Swedish chicken market, wants to acquire the third largest actor, Lagerberg i Norjeby AB. The Swedish Competition Authority has investigated the concentration and comes to the conclusion that the deal will significantly stunt the occurrence or the development of effective competition. This applies especially to packaged fresh chicken in the refrigerated display counters and for ready roasted chicken in the supermarkets.

A summons application has been submitted to Stockholm City Court petitioning for the business deal to be prohibited.

“The new actor would, if the deal went through, immediately be the dominating actor in Sweden. Other actors would find it difficult to compete on the market, and the risk for negative consumer effects such as price hikes is great”, says the Competition Authority's Director-General Dan Sjöblom.
The proposed commitments presented by the parties have not counteracted the negative effects. This is why the Competition Authority is now asking the court to prohibit the acquisition.

In order to prohibit the business deal the Competition Authority has submitted a summons application to Stockholm City Court petitioning for the business deal to be prohibited. The petition comes with a conditional fine of SEK 100m that shall be imposed if the prohibition is not adhered to.

Read the application, dnr 52/2016 (in Swedish)