CMA wins legal challenge in C茅r茅lia/Jus-Rol case
The Competition Appeal Tribunal has fully dismissed a legal challenge by C茅r茅lia and upheld the CMA鈥檚 decision to block C茅r茅lia鈥檚 acquisition of Jus-Rol.
The Tribunal dismissed all 4 grounds of C茅r茅lia鈥檚 鈥渁ttack鈥� on the CMA鈥檚 decision.
Sarah Cardell, Chief Executive of the CMA, said:
We welcome today鈥檚 judgment, which fully dismisses all 4 grounds of C茅r茅lia鈥檚 appeal, and confirms that the CMA鈥檚 decision to block this merger was fully supported by the evidence and procedurally fair.
C茅r茅lia must now sell off Jus-Rol in its entirety to make sure shoppers don鈥檛 face higher prices and worse quality products.
In January this year, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued its Phase 2 decision on the C茅r茅lia/Jus Rol merger. It found that the deal would substantially lessen competition, putting UK grocers at risk of higher prices and lower quality products 鈥� which could ultimately be passed on to shoppers.
The decision found that the deal brought together the 2 leading suppliers in the market by a considerable margin, and that they face limited competition, with all other suppliers being far smaller and many of them lacking the capabilities held by C茅r茅lia and Jus-Rol.
Evidence from grocery retailers showed that they consider C茅r茅lia and Jus-Rol鈥檚 products to be important alternatives to one another 鈥� with grocers telling the CMA that the ability to trade off Jus-Rol against C茅r茅lia, and vice versa, when buying their products allows them to get a better deal for their customers.
C茅r茅lia disagreed with the CMA鈥檚 decision and appealed to the Tribunal. Following a hearing in July, the judgment has been handed down today.
The Tribunal unanimously dismissed all 4 grounds of C茅r茅lia鈥檚 appeal. It confirmed that the CMA had gathered and carefully weighed a great deal of information and evidence for its assessment, and had not made any error of fact or law. The Tribunal also considered that the scope of the remedy was well reasoned and proportionate. Finally, the Tribunal confirmed that the process followed by the CMA was rational and fair.
C茅r茅lia has already given final undertakings to sell the Jus-Rol business but this process was suspended pending the outcome of C茅r茅lia鈥檚 appeal. Following today鈥檚 judgment, the CMA now expects C茅r茅lia to commence the sale process.
For more information, visit the C茅r茅lia / Jus-Rol merger inquiry page.
For media enquiries, contact the CMA press office on 020 3738 6460 or press@cma.gov.uk.