Plastic bag 'cartel' shopped

Finnish products giant UPM-Kymmene is one of a number of European companies being investigated by Brussels for joining a suspected cartel in industrial bags.

Whilst declining to name the companies involved in the antitrust probe, a European Commission spokesman said the behaviour affected markets in France, Germany, the Benelux region and Spain.

The bags are those used to hold animal feed and fertiliser.

UPM-Kymmene Corp already confirmed earlier on Tuesday it had received an official ‘statement of objections’ (SOO) from the EU detailing the concerns.

The SOO is the preliminary step in a formal antitrust investigation, setting out the EU's competition concerns, before a full legal challenge, and possible fines, are issued.

The commission will wait for a response from the suspected parties before deciding whether or not to take further action.

“It is a standard procedure,” said the spokesman for EU competition commissioner Mario Monti.

“It does not mean the commission has come to a final decision.”

The commission said the concerns were sent to 43 companies on April 29 – with two months given as a deadline to report back to Brussels.

EU antitrust officials are keen to clamp down on cartels, whose behaviour - usually including price-rigging and information sharing - can drastically alter the equlibrium of the market and affect competition.

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