The Commerce Commission has released a Statement of Unresolved Issues on the application from Foodstuffs North Island Limited and Foodstuffs South Island Limited seeking clearance to merge.
The Statement of Unresolved Issues outlines the competition issues in respect of which the Commission is not satisfied and that it continues to test in relation to the merger. The Statement of Unresolved Issues is not a final decision and does not mean that the Commission intends to decline or clear the merger.
The Commission is seeking submissions from Foodstuffs North Island, Foodstuffs South Island and other interested parties on the issues raised in the Statement of Unresolved Issues.
The Statement of Unresolved Issues, along with other documents related to the Commission’s investigation on the parties’ application, can be found on the case register.
Submissions can be sent by email to registrar@comcom.govt.nz with the reference “Foodstuffs merger” in the subject line.
Submissions are due by close of business on 12 August 2024, with cross-submissions due by close of business on 23 August 2024.
The Commission is currently scheduled to make a decision on the application by 1 October 2024. However, this date may be extended.
Background
Foodstuffs North Island and Foodstuffs South Island currently operate as separate co-operatives that focus on serving the island in which they are located. With the proposed merger, Foodstuffs North Island and Foodstuffs South Island would merge to become a single national grocery entity.
ComCom says: “We will give clearance to a proposed merger if we are satisfied that the merger is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market.
The Statement of Unresolved Issues we have published is the third issues statement that the Commission has released on the merger, and follows the process outlined in our Mergers & Acquisitions Guidelines.
On 18 January 2024, the Commission published a statement of preliminary issues summarising the key points in the application and setting out the issues that we considered important at the start of our investigation. On 4 April 2024, the Commission published a statement of issues setting out the potential competition issues that we had identified following our initial investigation of the merger. Following the receipt of submissions on the Statement of Unresolved Issues, the Commission will make its final decision to either clear or decline the merger.
Further information explaining how the Commission assesses a merger clearance application – including a copy of our Guidelines – is available on our website.”
