As we reported yesterday, the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection obliged the OSM in Koło to change practices that may be unfavorable for milk suppliers. He questioned the actions regarding the unilateral change of the price list, the inability to verify milk tests and sanctions for terminating cooperation.
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The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection took the side of milk suppliers in OSM Koło
Statement of the Management Board of OSM in Koło regarding the decision of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection
The District Dairy Cooperative in Koło declares that "with a sense of responsibility for its actions that may affect cooperating entities, in particular farmers-milk suppliers, it operates in accordance with the law and respects the provisions of the Act on counteracting unfair use of contractual advantage in the trade of agricultural and food products ".
In connection with the decision of the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection issued against the OSM in Koło, the Cooperative indicates that it was issued after the final agreement on February 15, 2024 on the changes proposed by the Cooperative in the content of the contract templates used, which were concluded in 2015 before the introduction of the Act on the so-called contractual advantage.
"The decision of the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection issued against the cooperative does not prove the use of inappropriate practices, but only makes their use probable," emphasizes the management board of OSM Koło.
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According to the cooperative's management, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection's doubts concerned:
- As far as the issue of changing the price list is concerned, the existing contractual provisions, in the opinion of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, were not sufficient and required clarification of the supplier's rights as an entity cooperating with the Cooperative.
- In terms of verifying the tests of the delivered milk, in practice the Cooperative performed additional quality tests of the milk at the supplier's request and most often they ended with a result favorable to the farmer. However, the only objection of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection was that they were performed in the same laboratory with capital connections with the Cooperative.
- Referring to the applicable contractual provision on the need to return part of the previously paid amount, the so-called loyalty bonus by suppliers who changed the recipient, the Cooperative introduced changes and the Representative Meeting accepted them. At the same time, in recent years the Cooperative has not sought the refund of these loyalty bonuses in court.
OSM Koło dispels doubts
In the opinion of the cooperative, in all three areas that were of interest to the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, the cooperative operated in accordance with the law, but in order to dispel doubts, the cooperative decided to include changes in the contracts, especially those introducing additional rights for suppliers, which were accepted by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection.
– We emphasize that the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection did not impose a fine on our Cooperative. We will fulfill the proposed conditions, in accordance with the decision, within the agreed deadlines, emphasized the management board.
