Annual Report
The AFCA is the authority in charge of enforcing the FWGB and publishes an annual report on its activities. The report includes the number of complaints received over the past twelve months and all investigations that were either initiated or concluded in the previous year. As the competent enforcement authority, the AFCA has an extensive range of investigative tools at its disposal. The Authority may, for example, apply to the Cartel Court to have a fine of up to EUR 500,000 imposed on buyers that are in breach of UTP provisions.
“When buyers engage in unfair trading practices, this unfairly disadvantages suppliers. Following our sector inquiry into the food industry, we have stressed our intention to prioritise the prosecution of unfair trading practices, and this is reflected in our new Annual Report,” states Natalie Harsdorf, Director General for Competition.
An overview of the FWBG can be found at: Unfair trading practices
Complaints in 2024
In 2024, the complaints lodged with the AFCA include requests for payments that were not related to the sale of agricultural and food products, and unilateral modifications of the terms of supply agreements.
The AFCA was also informed by an interest group that DM had sent a letter requesting an “OCR bonus” for the digital expansion of its stores, amounting to between 1.5% and 2.5% and starting from May 2024. In the AFCA’s opinion, there was no specific consideration from DM in return, which is why it filed an application with the Cartel Court on 26 February 2025 to impose fines for breaches in 20 cases (see press release of 6 March 2025).
In May 2024, the AFCA was informed of a suspected unilateral modification of supply agreements in relation to foldable and stackable plastic crates, which are used for supplying fruit and vegetables and displaying them in the store. A food retailer had allegedly forced suppliers to replace their green crates with identical but more expensive black crates. Additionally, the operator of this system was also said to be blocking deliveries and taking too long to return deposits paid by its food retail suppliers, raising the suspicion that it was also abusing a dominant market position. The comprehensive investigations into this case did not confirm the alleged misconduct, with proceedings therefore being discontinued.
Ongoing investigations due to other complaints
Apart from those mentioned here, other investigations were also initiated in 2024; these are still ongoing. The complaints in these cases relate to unilateral modifications of supply agreements by several companies in the same sector. In addition to an examination of the facts of the case, the legal implications are currently also being looked into. With inquiries still ongoing, further details cannot be revealed at this stage. The AFCA will make results available as soon as this is possible.
Applications with the Cartel Court
On 23 February 2024, the AFCA filed an application with the Cartel Court to impose an appropriate fine on an apple wholesaler who had allegedly paid two fruit growers late on a number of occasions.
The full report can be downloaded (in German) from the following link: FWBG Report
AFCA applications filed with the Cartel Court in relation to FWBG cases so far:
Unfair trading practices: AFCA files applications with Cartel Court for fines on MPREIS in 16 cases