On 26 February 2026, within the framework of an infringement investigation, the Competition Council (CC), on the basis of a court decision and with the support of the State Police and other law enforcement authorities, carried out procedural actions provided for in Article 9(5), Point 4 of the Competition Law at two undertakings operating in the food retail sector.
The CC has identified indications of a prohibited agreement between the two largest food retail undertakings, which may not have acted independently and may have coordinated the prices of goods, thereby negatively affecting consumer interests and potentially infringing Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Horizontal prohibited agreements, or cartels, constitute one of the most serious infringements of competition law. Accordingly, for such an infringement, market participants may be subject to a fine of up to 10% of their net turnover in the previous financial year worldwide for each undertaking.
The purpose of the procedural actions is to verify the existence of the alleged infringement in the activities of the relevant market participants against whom the investigation has been initiated, by obtaining the necessary information and evidence during the procedural actions. The CC emphasises that an infringement may be established only at the conclusion of the investigation, after all information obtained during the procedural actions and otherwise gathered by the CC has been compiled and assessed, and after the market participants have been heard.
The CC invites suppliers and any other persons to report to the CC if they possess information that may be useful for the investigation. The CC guarantees the anonymity of informants.
Report an infringement: https://www.kp.gov.lv/lv/zinot-par-parkapumu
The CC also invites market participants involved in a potential infringement of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to make use of the Leniency Programme and thereby qualify for a significant reduction of the fine.
Leniency Programme: https://www.kp.gov.lv/lv/iecietibas-programma
Information for the media:
At this stage of the investigation, the CC cannot provide more detailed information regarding the scope of the case, including the undertakings at whose premises the procedural actions were carried out, as this constitutes restricted-access information and may interfere with the effective conduct of the investigation.