Ministry to ask Competition Commission to probe procurement of agricultural products
Minister Borche Serafimovski said a detailed initiative will be lodged this week to check for collusion, market abuse and unfair trading in procurements.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy (MAFWE) announced it will file a formal initiative this week with the Commission for Protection of Competition to examine problems in the procurement of agricultural products, Minister Borche Serafimovski said today.
Central review, not isolated spot checks
Analyses of market conditions for purchases of peppers, paddy (unmilled) rice, Vranec and other agricultural goods showed the need for a wider institutional response, the ministry said, prompting the move to involve the Competition Commission alongside regular inspections by the State Agricultural Inspectorate.
“Based on the established facts, during this working week we will submit a substantiated initiative to the Competition Commission, which as an independent body will assess whether there is a basis for action under the Law on Protection of Competition and the Law on the Prohibition of Unfair Trading Practices in the supply chain of agricultural and food products,” Serafimovski said.
The ministry signalled it will not treat procurement problems only through individual checks at buying points but will analyse the market’s overall functioning. The Commission will be asked to verify whether there are signs of illegal collusion among buyers, abuse of market power or application of unfair trading practices to the detriment of producers.
Serafimovski also warned that difficult market conditions cannot be used to justify breaches of contracts, opaque classification of produce or shifting the entire commercial risk onto farmers. “We will not pre-assign blame, but we will mobilize all available institutional capacities so that the facts are independently and professionally verified,” he added.
The ministry said its goal is to protect agricultural producers by combining the State Agricultural Inspectorate’s routine controls with other legal instruments and with an independent competition review to determine if formal proceedings are warranted.
Photo: press material from the event
