The Turkish Competition Board has launched a formal investigation into seven major companies operating in the hazelnut purchasing and sales sector following the conclusion of a preliminary inquiry into domestic market practices.
The investigation targets several leading industry players, including Ferrero Fındık, Atalay Fındık, Balsu Gıda, Karaçuha Tarım Ürünleri, Ofi Tarım, Özyılmaz Fındık, and Şenocak Gıda. Regulators are examining whether these entities violated Act No. 4054 on the Protection of Competition by coordinating hazelnut purchase prices, harmonizing purchasing policies, and improperly influencing price formation across the domestic supply chain.
A central element of the proceeding involves verifying compliance with binding structural and behavioral commitments previously imposed on Ferrero Fındık in March 2024. Under that binding agreement, Ferrero agreed to specific market parameters covering the 2024, 2025, and 2026 harvest seasons. These commitments mandated that Ferrero must not purchase in-shell hazelnuts below the reference price established by the Turkish Grain Board, capped its seasonal purchases at 100,000 tons of in-shell hazelnuts per year, and required it to purchase at least 45,000 tons during the peak harvesting window between September and December of each year.
The Competition Board will evaluate whether the target companies engaged in anti-competitive coordination or price manipulation, while simultaneously determining if Ferrero fulfilled its mandatory purchasing quotas and pricing floors. As Turkey represents the world’s primary exporter of hazelnuts, the inquiry carries significant weight for regional agricultural supply chains, global confectionery producers, and local farmers whose livelihoods depend on fair pricing transparency.