The Commerce Commission registered, this morning, an application from Goodman Fielder Ltd for clearance to acquire the baking and milling assets of Defiance Mills Ltd.
Commission Chairman Dr Alan Bollard said that the Commerce Act gives the Commission 10 working days within which to make a decision, but allows for extensions of time, if necessary.
Dr Bollard said that the Commerce Act prohibits business acquisitions that result in dominance being acquired or strengthened in any markets. The Commission will grant a clearance if it is satisfied that dominance is not acquired or strengthened.
He said that the Commission will investigate the proposal and decide what are the relevant markets and how the acquisition, if it went ahead, would impact on competition in those markets.
Both companies are based in Australia and have extensive interests in New Zealand.
Among Goodman Fielder's New Zealand interests are Quality Bakers New Zealand Ltd, Goodman Fielder Mills (NZ) Ltd and Bluebird Foods Ltd. It produces the Nature's Fresh, Molenberg, Country Split, Vogel's, Reizensteins and McGregors brands of bread.
Defiance owns and operates in New Zealand a range of baking, milling, crumbing and sandwich making businesses. It bakes bread under the brand name Countryfare.
The assets Goodman Fielder wants to acquire are: leasehold and freehold real estate, plant, equipment, consumable stores, stock, intellectual property, customer information and goodwill.
Copies of Goodman Fielder's about 80 page application should be available from the Commission's Wellington office tomorrow.
