Brussels, 18 February 2026 – AIM, the European Brands Association, takes note of the recent fine imposed on Eurelec, marking the second consecutive year in which the retail purchasing alliance has been sanctioned, following a €38 million fine last year.
This repeated enforcement action underscores the importance of ensuring a fair trading environment for all suppliers and grocery producers operating in the European Union. Structural imbalances in FMCG markets, combined with cross-border purchasing alliances, enable unfair trading practices to be imposed on suppliers — regardless of what they sell — undermining grocery producers and weakening the entire supply chain.
European Retail Alliances have expanded significantly in recent years. Their coverage has grown from 31% of grocery sales in 2015 to around 60% in 2024. This consolidation of purchasing power at EU scale intensifies pressure on suppliers and reinforces structural dependency, with negative cascading effects on the entire agri-food supply chain.
The Eurelec case illustrates why stronger cross-border cooperation between enforcement authorities is necessary. In this context, the European Parliament’s adoption last week of the Cross-Border Enforcement Regulation — with 555 votes in favour and none against — is an important step forward.
However, improved coordination between authorities cannot by itself correct a structural imbalance in market power, nor can it resolve the fragmentation of the current UTP framework. Differences between Member States in the application of the €350 million turnover threshold and the sectoral scope of the Directive create uneven conditions across the Single Market. In practice, this enables European Retail Alliances to engage in regulatory arbitrage — structuring negotiations and establishing entities in jurisdictions with the narrowest applicable national framework. Eurelec, headquartered in Belgium where the threshold remains in place, illustrates how alliances may fall outside the Directive’s scope despite operating across multiple Member States.
An urgent revision of the Unfair Trading Practices (UTP) Directive is therefore essential to ensure a genuine level playing field across the EU.
Fourteen Member States removed the €350 million threshold during their implementation of the original Directive, recognising that unfair trading practices can be imposed on any supplier, irrespective of size. Dependence is determined by market power, not turnover. Moreover, retail alliances negotiate across entire product portfolios, not only agri-food; limiting the scope risks displacing unfair practices rather than resolving them.
AIM supports removing the turnover threshold and aligning the scope of the Directive with market realities, so that all suppliers and grocery producers are protected under coherent and effective EU rules.
Find out more about UTP and Antitrust Cases in the EU Supply Chain.
