March 29, 2017
Japan Fair Trade Commission
The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) today issued a cease and desist order to the JA Tosa-Aki Agricultural Cooperative (JA Tosa-Aki). In this case, JA Tosa-Aki had committed an act that violates Article 19 (Item 12 [Trading on Restrictive Terms]) of the Antimonopoly Act (AMA).
The JA Tosa-Aki had been entrusted with sales of eggplants from its member in the following conditions to restrict shipping of eggplants to others than the JA Tosa-Aki .
(1) The JA Tosa-Aki does not accept sales of eggplants from its former members who were expelled from the JA Tosa-Aki due to the fact that they shipped eggplants to others than the JA Tosa-Aki .
(2) The JA Tosa-Aki collects fees, fines, etc. from its members who shipped eggplants to others than the JA Tosa-Aki.
In the hearing procedure, the JFTC notified the participant of the contents of the proposed order in writing and provided it with opportunities to view and copy the evidence which became a basis for the order and to submit their opinions and evidence to the JFTC. Before issuing the order, the JFTC took into consideration the opinions and the evidence submitted. A recipient dissatisfied with the orders may file a revocation suit against the JFTC as a defendant, within 6 months from such knowledge or within a year from the date of the order.
＊Every announcement is tentative translation. Please refer to the original text written in Japanese for more details.
