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The Philippine Competition Commission’s enforcement office charged a group of vegetable traders for entering into a collusive agreement for the supply of imported onions in the country
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PCC identified six onion traders, a distributor of vegetables, and a freight forwarding company among others in the charges
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A total fine of about P2.4 billion was recommended given the duration of the collusive agreement and the involvement of a basic commodity
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Despite being competitors, the vegetable traders conspired to manipulate the local onion market from 2019 to 2023 in violation of the Philippine Competition Act, PCC said
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PCC will hear the case in the exercise of its power as a quasi-judicial agency
The Philippine Competition Commission’s (PCC) enforcement office (EO) has charged a group of vegetable traders for entering into a collusive agreement for the supply of imported onions in the country.
In a complaint filed with the PCC on July 9, 2024, the EO identified Philippine Vieva Group of Companies, Inc. (Phil. Vieva Group); Tian Long Corp. (Tian Long); La Reina Fresh Vegetables & Young Indoor Plants, Inc. (La Reina); Yom Trading Corporation (Yom Trading); Vegetable Importers, Exporters & Vendors Association of the Philippines (VIEVA Phils.); and Golden Shine International Freight Forwarders Corp. (Golden Shine), among others in the charges.
The PCC’s investigative and prosecutorial arm recommended a total fine of approximately P2.4 billion given the duration of the collusive agreement and the involvement of a basic commodity.
Evidence showed these traders had assigned among themselves sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPSICs) issued by the Agriculture department’s Bureau of Plant Industry, PCC said. They then distributed the volume of onions allowed for importation.
The PCC’s EO claimed the vegetable traders conspired to manipulate the onion market in the Philippines from 2019 to 2023. The importers of onions from China, the Netherlands, and India allegedly worked together to control prices and limit competition.
Tian Long; Yom Trading; La Reina; Phil. Vieva Group; Rosal Fruit and Vegetable Trading (Rosal); and Vegefru Producing Store (Vegefru) are involved in onion trading, while VIEVA Phils. distributes vegetables. Golden Shine provides freight forwarding services.
The respondents, despite being competitors, had colluded to lessen competition in the market “by exchanging sensitive business information such as price, suppliers, customers, volume, shipping, distribution, and storage,” PCC said.
The PCC’s EO said “these actions substantially reduced competition, leading to distorted supply and artificial price increases, thereby harming consumers.” Such actions violated Sections 14(b)(2) and Section 14(c) of Republic Act No. 10667, also known as the Philippine Competition Act (PCA).
To gather evidence for the case, the PCC’s EO conducted an administrative search and inspection of the involved entities in September 2023. This was the first dawn raid conducted under the Rules on Administrative Search and Inspection (RASI), which the Supreme Court issued in 2019. The RASI outlines procedures for conducting such inspections to investigate potential violations of the PCA.
During the raid, the PCC amassed voluminous documents, records, and electronic data related to the companies’ trading activities.
Upon receipt of the complaint filed by the EO, the PCC will hear the case in the exercise of its power as a quasi-judicial agency.
Other respondents
Also named in the complaint as individual respondents are Lilia M. Cruz, vice president of Phil. Vieva Group, chairperson and president of Golden Shine, and chairperson of VIEVA Phils.; Eric Pabilona, board member of Phil. Vieva Group, corporate executive officer of Golden Shine, and corporate secretary of Tian Long; Renato V. Francisco, Jr., board member of Phil. Vieva Group, president of La Reina, and chairman and president of Yom Trading; and Letty T. Baculando, board member of Phil. Vieva Group and incorporator of Golden Shine.
Likewise impleaded were Mark Castro Ocampo and Nancy Callanta Rosal, sole proprietors of Vegefru and Rosal, respectively.
