I scream, you scream we all scream for ice-cream
Peters Ice Cream has been slapped with a massive $12 million fine after it was caught preventing competitors from selling their products at petrol stations and convenience stores.
The Federal Court found that Peters, from November 2014 to December 2019, made a sketchy deal with their transport partner PFD Food Services to not sell competitor’s ice cream without prior consent.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), who prosecuted Peters in court, said the deal very clearly reduced competition and reduced options for consumers.
“This is an important competition law case involving products enjoyed by many Australians,” ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said.
“We took this action because we were concerned that Peters Ice Cream’s conduct could reduce competition in this market and impact on the choice of single-serve ice-creams available to consumers.”
Other ice cream manufacturers who make Bulla, Gelativo and Pure Pops had approached PFD asking them to distribute their product.
However, PFD said they were unable to distribute the ice creams due to its exclusive deal with Peters.
"Peters Ice Cream admitted that if PFD had not been restricted from distributing other manufacturers' ice cream products, it was likely that one or more potential competitors would have entered or expanded in this market,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb continued.
“This case is a reminder to all businesses of the serious and costly consequences of engaging in anti-competitive conduct.
“The ACCC is targeting exclusive arrangements by firms with market power that impact competition as one of our compliance and enforcement priorities for 2022/23.”
Peters Ice Cream was ordered to establish a compliance program for three years and pay a contribution to the ACCC’s legal costs.
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