Flour producer Dossche Mills cleared to acquire rival Meneba

Belgian flour producer Dossche Mills has been cleared to acquire its Dutch rival Meneba. Sufficient competition will remain in the flour sector after this concentration. Competitive pressure from the German mills, which now already serve 30% of the market, is expected to increase in the near future. This has been concluded by the Netherlands Authority of Consumers and Markets after an extensive investigation.

Meneba is the largest flour producer in the Netherlands. Dossche Mills is a Belgian flour producer with relatively limited production capacity in the Netherlands. It supplies Dutch buyers with flour from its location in the Netherlands and from Belgium.

Dutch bakeries want a type of flour that is suitable for the airy Dutch bread. Moreover, distance is an important factor in the decision of flour producers to deliver flour to a specific buyer.

ACM assessed whether other competitor mills are able to supply flour that meets Dutch standards. In addition, ACM mainly investigated the distance within which mills supply flour and what factors play a part in this, such as the forwarding costs of grain and the transportation costs of flour.

To this end, ACM spoke to Dutch and international competitors together with different buyers of flour, from small artisanal bakeries to large industrial buyers.

ACM ultimately concluded that, for the regions where Dossche Mills and Meneba now supply flour, buyers will have sufficient mills to choose from that are able to supply flour that meet Dutch standards.

In the Netherlands as well as in Belgium and, due to the favorable location of wheat fields, particularly in Germany, there are enough competitors of Dossche Mills and Meneba who are able to supply flour in the Netherlands.

That is why ACM does not foresee any competition issues arising as a result of the acquisition.