- within Food, Drugs, Healthcare, Life Sciences, Employment and HR, Litigation and Mediation & Arbitration topic(s)
The Net Tightens in the Field Crop Seed Market: Competition Investigation Expands to New Undertakings
The Turkish Competition Board ("TCB") added Agromar, CMC, Seedcorp, and Semillas Fito to the ongoing investigation concerning sunflower, maize, cotton, barley, wheat, and alfalfa seeds. The Turkish Competition Authority ("TCA") had previously launched an investigation in May 2025 into several companies operating in this market, including Corteva, KWS, Limagrain, May-Agro, Monsanto, Polen, and Syngenta. These allegations involve anti-competitive conduct among competitors, such as the exchange of price lists, production plans, and information on payments to farmers, as well as the allocation of regions and customers. In parallel, a separate investigation into the markets for hybrid industrial gherkin seeds and hybrid vegetable and fruit seeds is still ongoing
The TCA Intervenes in the Document Solutions Market
The TCA has launched an investigation against the KYOCERA economic unit and its distributor GESKOPİKİT, which operate in the markets for office supplies, information technologies, document solutions, data processing equipment, and related software. Findings from the preliminary inquiry suggest potential restrictions on parallel imports, limitations on the customers and geographic areas in which dealers may sell, and the imposition of resale prices. The investigation will also assess whether non-compete clauses and single-sourcing obligations included in KYOCERA's dealership agreements are compatible with Law No. 4054 on the Protection of Competition. Practices such as restricting parallel imports and fixing resale prices are considered serious infringements, as they directly limit price competition, reduce consumer access to lower-priced alternatives, hinder access to alternative distribution channels, and create barriers to market entry.
Investigation Launched into the Seedling Sector
The TCA has launched an investigation into 18 undertakings operating in the vegetable seedling sector, along with the Seedling Producers Sub-Union. Preliminary findings point to strong indications that companies exchanged forward-looking information on prices, sales conditions, costs, profit expectations, and supply volumes. The TCB also identified instances where low-price competitors were allegedly pressured to increase prices and where prices and sales terms may have been jointly determined, including through meetings organized by the sectoral association. The investigation is being conducted with particular care to ensure that disruptions to competition at the very first stage of the food supply chain do not ultimately harm producers or consumers.
Investigation Launched into Dyson
The findings obtained during the preliminary examination indicate that Dyson may have engaged in practices aimed at restricting parallel imports and may have interfered with resale conditions. In addition, the investigation will closely examine Dyson's selective distribution system in Türkiye, as well as the measures allegedly taken to protect and enforce this system.
For clarity, a selective distribution system refers to a model under which a brand supplies its products only to sellers that meet specific criteria, rather than to all potential distributors. These authorized sellers are also required not to resell the products to unauthorized dealers.
The Decision on Joint Distribution Activities in the Turkish TV Series Sector
The TCA's investigation concluded through settlement and commitment procedures resulted in administrative fines of TRY 75 million (USD 1,74 million) for Ay Yapım and TRY 48 million (USD 1,11 million) for Med Yapım due to the exchange of competitively sensitive information regarding employee wages. The TCB's decision also introduces structural remedies, for instance the termination of the companies' joint distribution activities. In this context, their jointly controlled distributor, MADD Entertainment, will be divested or liquidated within 12 months and managed by independent administrators during the transition with all information flows to the parent companies cut off. Commitments further restrict both companies to distributing only their own productions, prohibit exclusivity arrangements, prevent coordination with other integrated producer-distributors.
Investigation Launched into Mettler-Toledo
The TCB assess whether the sales-after-services practices of the company's Turkish operations violate Article 6 of Law No. 4054. In particular, the investigation will examine whether Mettler-Toledo restricted the supply of spare parts to competitors and whether it withheld the passwords required to perform technical procedures on its devices. The case focuses on laboratory balances, weighing systems, and precision measurement equipment, areas in which Mettler-Toledo is a globally recognized brand.
TCA's Eye is on Orzaks
Orzaks operates in the dietary supplements and consumer health products market. The preliminary inquiry raised suspicions that the company required pharmacies to stock certain product groups together, restricted online sales by its distributors, and may have abused its dominant position through its discount practices. Based on these allegations, Orzaks will be investigated under Articles 4 and 6 of Law No. 4054
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