The Competition Commission enquiry into the UK supermarket industry published last October cost an incredible £3.75m (US$5.23m), it was revealed yesterday.
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The cost of the investigation came to light in the annual report, which showed it accounting for a large share of the total amount spent by the commission over the last 15 months.
Following an eight-month preliminary probe by the Office of Fair Trading, the 15-month study aimed to discover whether the UK sector is competitive and whether individual players operate a monopoly and overcharge consumers.
It considered the operations of 24 supermarket companies, including sector leaders Tesco, Asda, Safeway and Sainsbury’s, and concluded that, “excessive prices were not being charged or excessive profits earned” and the industry was “broadly competitive”.
Market watchers have questioned whether the report was value for money, and a spokesman told the Daily Telegraph: “The price is dictated literally by the size of the inquiry. This was one of the biggest inquiries we have undertaken.”
To read just-food.com’s coverage of the publication of the report, click here.
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