The Croatian Competition Agency (CCA) has imposed a fine of EUR 50,000 on PPK-BJELOVAR d.d., a retailer based in Bjelovar, for serious violations of the Croatian Act on the prohibition of unfair trading practices in the business-to-business food supply chain (UTPs Act).

The CCA initiated an investigation into PPK-BJELOVAR to determine if it abused its strong bargaining power to impose unfair trading practices on its suppliers of agricultural and food products. The findings revealed multiple infringements, including the failure to include delivery deadlines in contracts, which is a violation of Article 5 par 1 item 4 of the UTPs Act.

PPK-BJELOVAR was found to have operated with two suppliers without specifying delivery deadlines in their contracts. In one case, no delivery deadline was agreed upon in writing, while in another, only a fraction of deliveries had a written agreement on delivery times. This lack of contractual clarity constitutes an unfair trading practice under Article 4 par 2 item 1 of the UTPs Act.

Additionally, the retailer imposed non-contractual delivery terms on one supplier, further violating the UTPs Act. PPK-BJELOVAR also made late payments to three suppliers, exceeding the legal deadlines for both perishable and non-perishable products, which contravenes the payment deadlines set by the UTPs Act.

Moreover, PPK-BJELOVAR returned unsold food products to a supplier without proper contractual agreements, violating Article 12 par 2 item 7 of the UTPs Act. The CCA noted that these returns did not meet the exceptions outlined in the law, constituting another unfair trading practice.

To address these violations, the CCA has mandated commitments from PPK-BJELOVAR to eliminate these unfair trading practices. The fine of EUR 50,000 was deemed appropriate considering the severity and duration of the infringements, as well as their impact on suppliers. The CCA aims for this penalty to deter not only PPK-BJELOVAR but also other entities within the food supply chain from engaging in similar practices.