Communication
The aim of the protection of market competition is primarily to create benefits for consumers and equal conditions for all entrepreneurs on the market, who, acting in accordance with the existing rules and competing on the market with the quality, price and innovation of their products and services, contribute to the overall development of the economy.
Implementation of the Unfair Trading Practices Act
As the body in charge of investigating whether unfair trading practices have been imposed on the undertakings active in the food-supply chain, since 1 April 2018 the Croatian Competition Agency (CCA) opened seven ex-officio administrative proceedings, particularly involving the following companies: KAUFLAND Hrvatska k.d., Narodni trgovački lanac d.o.o., PLODINE d.d. and KOKA d.d.
The proceedings have been initiated by the CCA on its own initiative following the analysis of seven contracts (four of them concluded by Narodni trgovački lanac with different suppliers concerning different agri- and food products and one for each of the above listed undertakings), in which the CCA spotted several ambiguous or disputable provisions, that on the other hand, constitutes sufficient indices for the initiation of an ex-officio infringement proceeding.
The CCA notes that the mere opening of an infringement proceeding against a trader, buyer or a manufacturer does not mean that the practices described in the initiative necessarily constitute unfair trading practices and thereby an infringement of UTPs provisions.
The CCA decides on the merit on a case-by-case basis, inspecting the content of the contracts between the parties and how they have been concluded and implemented in accordance with all the established facts of any particular case, taking into account all the relevant facts of the case and concrete evidence that substantiate the indices on the basis of which the proceeding is opened in the first place.
In line with its confidentiality obligation, the CCA cannot give comments or release details about an ongoing case. Its final decision will be published in its entirety on this website.