Agri-food supply chain

In accordance with the Law of 1 June 2021 on business-to-business relationships in the agricultural and food supply chain, certain unfair trading practices between suppliers and buyers of agricultural and food products are prohibited and certain practices may be authorised only on the basis of express prior agreement.

The prohibited unfair trading practices include, in particular:

• payments that are late by more than a certain period and last-minute order cancellations for perishable food products;
• unilateral changes to contracts;
• forcing the supplier to pay for wasted products;
• refusal to sign written contracts.

These provisions are designed to protect farmers and small business operators against certain large operators in the agricultural and food supply chain who have significant bargaining power over their suppliers and could be tempted to abuse their position to impose unfair trading practices.

Suppliers who believe that they have been the victim of an unfair trading practice that is prohibited by law can file a complaint with the Authority.

If the investigation reveals that the law has been infringed, the Authority may impose fines ranging from EUR 251 to EUR 120,000 on the offending party and order that the illegal practice be brought to an end.