Belgium: EU's appeal court reduced antitrust fine on Danone for controlling Belgian beer sales

The European Union's appeal court reduced on October 25 an antitrust fine that EU regulators imposed on French dairy group Groupe Danone SA for controlling Belgian beer sales, the Associated Press reported.

The Luxembourg-based Court of First Instance ordered Danone to pay 42.4 million euros ($50.6 million), less than the 44 million euros ($52.6 million) fine the EU head office levied in 2001.The court reduced the fine as the European Commission had not done enough to prove allegations that Danone squeezed concessions out of Belgian rival Interbrew by threatening to drive it out of the French market.

"The commission was wrong to find out that there were aggravating circumstances with respect to Danone," the court said. It dismissed the rest of Danone's appeal.EU regulators fined Danone's Belgian unit Alken-Maes for teaming up with Interbrew , now known as InBev SA, in order to control Belgian beer sales. The companies were the two largest players on the Belgian market.

The EU Commission came down harder on Danone, claiming it had threatened to expel Interbrew from France unless it gave Danone a large beer sales quota for Belgium.The comission said the companies struck a general nonaggression pact to fix retail prices, to share information on sales volumes and to limit investments and advertising in hotels, restaurants and cafes from 1993 to 1998.

In 2004, EU regulators fined Danone 1.5 million euros ($1.79 million) for colluding with Dutch beer company Heineken NV to control the wholesale beer market in France. Danone — through its brewery Brasseries Kronenbourg — then controlled 40 percent of the French market and Heineken 30 percent.

Danone quit the beer business in 2000 when it sold off its French and Belgian breweries to Scottish & Newcastle from UK.

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