The Competition Authority announced yesterday that it had fined six fruit and vegetable wholesale companies for dictating prices to the detriment of farmers. The Competition Authority has imposed fines of up to 0.15% of the turnover of the previous financial year for each company.
But the investigation, which, in addition to being delayed, seems to have amnestied Albania's largest agri-food market, located in Tirana and managed by the EKMA company, owned by businessman Klodian Allajbeu.
The competition authority fined six fruit and vegetable collection and wholesale companies in the districts of Tirana, Elbasan, Berat, Fier and Korça, but not the capital's monopoly market that collects the highest amount of agricultural produce from local farmers.
Moreover, Allajbut's company, which manages the capital's Agro-Food Market, was fined 7 years ago by the Administrative Court with a fine of 430 thousand euros, but so far the bailiffs have only managed to collect 24 thousand euros. The abuses in this market began with the value of rents, the price of electricity and water, which was many times higher than the price set by the UK and OSHEE.
But despite this history, the Competition Authority this time stayed away from this market.
