Major soft drink suppliers and the two largest supermarkets in the country will jointly stop using the plastic handle on large packages of soft drinks and water. ACM has given them permission to do so, because according to the regulator it does not have a restrictive effect on competition. Nor would the customer suffer.
Manufacturers Coca-Cola and Vrumona and supermarkets Albert Heijn (AH) and Jumbo, among others, want to get rid of the handy handle. “By no longer adding a handle to the packaging, the packaging becomes more recyclable and less plastic is needed,” according to the ACM.
Because these large parties are working together in this, more than half of the packs with bottles will no longer have a handle. “We have looked at whether this makes the product more expensive and whether the product becomes less attractive to consumers,” said an ACM spokesperson when asked.
“According to the suppliers, the convenience of the handle does not play a role in the competitive process,” says the regulator. “No other signals emerged from a test carried out by some of the suppliers.”
The ACM must consider these types of joint agreements, because there are more supermarkets than AH and Jumbo. They should not be harmed. Consumers should also not be the victims of mutual agreements.
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