The European Commission approved the proposed merger in Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom after its investigation found no threat to effective competition outside Denmark “given the low market shares of the parties in these markets.” Tican and Danish Crown generate most of their revenue outside Denmark, and a significant part outside the European Union.
But in Denmark the situation is different because the company’s represent the lion’s share of pork production. The commission partially referred the proposed merger to the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority (DCCA) at the agency’s request. The commission found that the proposed merger “would threaten to significantly affect competition in certain markets in Denmark,” the EC said in a statement.
“The evidence gathered by the commission confirmed that the merger threatens to affect significantly competition in Denmark, where Danish Crown and Tican are currently the two largest competitors,” the commission noted. “The Commission therefore decided to partially refer the merger to the Danish Competition Authority, which will deal with the case under national law.”
Tican owns processing companies in Denmark, the United Kingdom and Poland. Danish Crown is Europe’s leading processed-meats business via its DC Foods division.
