Brussels, 31st May 2006 - The European Commission has cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the proposed acquisition by CVC of Luxemburg of two companies, Bocchi of The Netherlands and De Weide Blik of Belgium,. After examining the operation, the Commission concluded that the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition in the European Economic Area (EEA) or any substantial part of it.
Both Bocchi and De Weide Blik are active in the import, production and wholesale of fruit and vegetables. Their portfolio of activities also includes the wholesale of plants, flowers, and bulbs. CVC is a private equity fund.
The transaction gave rise to very limited overlaps and small combined market shares. Furthermore, while the limited activities of CVC in the retail sector and out-of-home eating as well as the production of ready-made food by De Weide Blik are vertically linked to the wholesale of fruits and vegetables, the Commission has concluded that the proposed transaction would not give rise to any significant reduction of competition.