Written by Ari Goren:
Israel passes first agricultural -anti cartel law
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Knesset member Yair Shamir said that he supports this amendment to the law. He explained that the proposed amendment will benefit both consumers and farmers who today suffer from marketers that work together against the farmers in order to pay lower prices on the one hand but to sell the produce at high prices to retailers on the other. “The cartel mark-ups are bad for everybody, farmers and consumer,” said Shamir.
In preparation for meeting of the Knesset’s Finance Committee, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Finance and the Trade Restriction Board presented an amended version of the government proposal to regulate or revoke exemptions for non-farming organizations that are involved in the wholesale marketing of agricultural produce.
The government’s proposal deals with existing exemptions in the Trade Restrictions Act relating to restrictive operations (cartels, price fixing etc.), in relation to the growing and wholesale marketing of agricultural produce. Due to existing exemptions, the restrictive trade practices controller has no authority to act against agricultural cartels.
The aim of the amendment is to leave in place the exemptions for growers of agricultural produce and to exclude from the exception organizations whose main activity is the marketing rather than the growing of agricultural produce and as accepted in the world.
In preparation for the Economic Committee discussion, government ministries reviewed the amendment in order to ensure that, after the amendment’s passage, the law will continue to protect producers of agricultural produce and who deserve protection. As a result, the definition of a farmer who is entitled to continue enjoying the exemption was expanded to all those whose primary activity is not the wholesale marketing of other producers agricultural produce.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Knesset member Yair Shamir said that he supports this amendment to the law. He explained that the proposed amendment will benefit both consumers and farmers who today suffer from marketers that work together against the farmers in order to pay lower prices on the one hand but to sell the produce at high prices to retailers on the other. “The cartels mark-up is bad for everybody, farmers and consumer,” said Shamir.