Egg Farmgate Price Collusion Sanctioned as 30-Pack Tops 8,000 Won in Seoul

South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission said on the 14th that it imposed a corrective order and a 594 million won fine on the Korea Laying Hen Association for determining benchmark prices used in farmgate egg transactions. The action comes as the average price of a 30-count pack of special-grade eggs in Seoul recently exceeded 8,000 won, with the commission judging that the association’s conduct affected high egg prices. The association, established in January 2023, includes 580 farms that produce and sell eggs. Their laying hens account for 56.4% of the nation’s total flock. From its founding until this January, the association set regional benchmark prices and frequently notified farms. Actual transaction prices were formed very close to those benchmarks. Last year, the Seoul metropolitan benchmark price of 5,296 won for 30 eggs was above the production cost of 3,856 won. Source: rss.donga.com