The Competition Council fined 21 companies 83.2 million lei for anti-competitive agreements in the field of seeds and plant protection products.

The Competition Council has imposed total fines of 83.2 million lei (15.87 million euros) on 21 companies involved in price-fixing in the seed and plant protection product markets in Romania.

The investigation revealed that producers and distributors, such as Pioneer Hi-Bred, Corteva, and Maisadour, set resale prices to farmers through agreements and voucher systems. The authority found that although farmers could choose the distributor, the final price was set beforehand between the producer and the distributor, affecting competition. The largest fines were imposed on the distributor Agrii Romania (17.9 million lei) and the producer Pioneer (14.47 million lei). 15 of the 21 companies acknowledged the violations and benefited from reduced fines.

Monsanto was not sanctioned, as there was not enough evidence to demonstrate that its prices operated as fixed prices. The Council's decisions are enforceable, and the fines constitute revenue for the state budget.