The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has therefore today confirmed that it will be cancelling its Phase 2 merger investigation into the deal.
ForFarmers and 2Agriculture both manufacture and supply chicken and other types of poultry feed in the UK.
After completing its initial Phase 1 investigation in December 2022, the CMA found that the proposed deal could lead to farmers paying higher prices to feed their poultry, facing lower quality feed or worse quality of service in four local areas across East Anglia, north-western England and North Wales. The companies offered proposals to address these concerns but the CMA considered that these were unlikely to be sufficient in addressing its competition concerns and so the deal was referred for an in-depth Phase 2 investigation. The CMA subsequently paused its investigation for 3 weeks while the companies decided whether to proceed with the merger.
ForFarmers and Boparan have now decided to abandon the deal so the CMA will be cancelling its investigation.
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