An investigation conducted by the UK’s Office of Fair Trading has reportedly uncovered evidence of price sharing between the country’s largest supermarkets and consumer goods companies.
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According to a report in the Financial Times, the OFT has told the UK’s big four supermarkets – Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons – that it has “reasonable grounds” to suspect pricing information was being passed between them by suppliers.
When contacted by just-food, the OFT declined to comment on the report but did confirm that it is conducting an ongoing investigation into potential breaches of competition regulations.
In April, the OFT raided the supermarkets and consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble and requested information from a number of other firms including Nestlé and Unilever, just-food understands.
If found guilty of breaking competition law, companies can be fined up to 10% of their turnover.
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By GlobalDataTesco, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons declined to comment on the allegations while Asda was not immediately available for comment.
