Pie firm faces investigation into size of its slice of market
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Version 0 of 1. Competition authorities are launching an in-depth inquiry into the pork pie, pasty and sausage roll market, after two of the biggest suppliers merged. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Wednesday it would be undertaking an investigation into Pork Farms’ acquisition of the chilled savoury pastries division of Kerry Foods, both of which supply supermarkets with own-label snacks. The watchdog said the merger between the two firms had created the “realistic prospect” of “a substantial lessening of competition” in the supply of sausage rolls and cold and hot pies. It said the “phase two” investigation, which involves a 24-week examination of the industry to establish whether the newly merged company has too much of the market, would go ahead unless Pork Farms offered “acceptable undertakings” within the next five days. Andrea Coscelli, executive director of markets and mergers at the CMA, said: “These are very popular products which are currently produced by a small number of manufacturers. “This merger will further reduce the choice available to retailers and consumers and may give the merged company the ability to raise prices or reduce the quality of these products.” A Pork Farms spokesman said the company was “obviously disappointed” with the referral. “We continue to believe that the transaction will provide our customers with a streamlined, more responsive and better invested supply chain, reflecting the increasingly competitive retail landscape that we are seeing in today’s markets as consumers’ shopping habits change,” it said. As the takeover was completed in August with no conditions, it is understood that Kerry Foods would not be affected by any decision to block the deal and unclear what would happen to its former savoury snacks business. |