• The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) gave permission for Smithfield Foods to take over Pini Polonia.
• The enterprises operate on the meat production and processing market.
• This case required market research.

The transaction concerning the takeover of Pini Polonia by Smithfield Foods was originally reported to the European Commission. However, the EC referred the case to UOKiK, because it considered that the concentration affects only the Polish market, and the Office has adequate knowledge and experience to investigate the matter.

Smithfield Foods is a global corporation operating on the meat production and processing market. In Poland, it controls, inter alia, the Animex Group and owns nine meat production and processing plants, including three slaughterhouses. Pini Polonia belongs to the Pini capital Group, owning companies in Poland, Italy and Hungary. It has a slaughterhouse in Kutno, it also supplies meat to sale outlets and processing plants.

This case required market research. UOKiK had to examine, inter alia, the market shares of concentration participants and other entrepreneurs operating in this market.

The analysis of the effects of the concentration has shown that it will not restrict competition. Smithfield Foods will have to compete with other slaughterhouses, therefore there is no reason to worry that the entrepreneurs will lower the purchase prices of livestock, especially in view of the fact that prices on the domestic market are transparent. In the opinion of the Office, the concentration will not affect the access of small and medium market participants to large meat recipients (e.g. retail chains).

According to the regulations, the transaction is subject to notification to the antimonopoly office if it involves enterprises whose total turnover in the preceding year exceeded EUR 1 billion in the world or EUR 50 million in Poland.

The decision on implementing the concentration expires if the transaction is not made within 2 years of its issuance. The UOKiK website contains information on all antimonopoly proceedings conducted by UOKiK and related to concentration. More information about the principles governing merging will be presented in a specially prepared compilation.

Additional information for the media:

UOKiK Press Office
pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warsaw
Phone: 22 55 60 345
Email: biuroprasowe@uokik.gov.pl
Twitter: @UOKiKgovPL