In a circulated Notice recently, the Competition and Tariff Commission is advising all interested stakeholders and the general public that in terms of Section 28(2) of the Competition Act (Chapter 14:28), the Competition and Tariff Commission has commenced an investigation into an alleged restrictive practice into the distribution of stock feeds. It is alleged that distribution of day old chicks is making the sale of day old chicks conditional upon one buying a particular number of stock feed bags.
“Section 28 of the Competition Act empowers the Competition and Tariff Commission to undertake investigations into any restrictive practice which the Commission has reason to believe exists or may come into existence. Prima facie, the practice by distributors of day old chicks and stock feeds may constitute a restrictive practice in terms of the Act, with the likely effect of (i) restricting the entrance and expansion of players into the stock-feed market, and/or (ii) preventing or retarding the expansion of the existing stock-feed market, and/or (iii) limiting the commodity or service available due to tied or conditional selling,” read the Notice.
The Notice further advises that the commencement of investigations neither pre-supposes that the conduct being investigated is anti-competitive nor that any of the alleged companies violated provisions of the Act. The Commission advises that in accordance with the provisions of Section 28 of the Act, it will conduct an investigation into the distribution of day old chicks and stock feeds and determine whether the practice restricts competition directly or indirectly to a material degree.
The Commission further advises all interested stakeholders and the general public to submit their representations to the Commission by emailing them to director@competition.co.zw and/or enquiries@competition.co.zw or submit hard copies to The Director, Competition and Tariff Commission, Block One, 2nd Floor, Unit L, Celestial Office Park Offices, 1908 Borrowdale Road, Harare.
All representations are to be submitted to the Commission no later than 29 November 2018. The Commission advises that all representations submitted to the Commission will be treated in strict confidence and will only be used for the purposes of this investigation.
For any further details and/or clarification on any aspect of the Commission’s investigation, you may contact Mr Polite Mukombo, on Tel: (+263) 853127-32/(+263)8644137945 or email: pmukombo@competition.co.zw
