Report takes fizz out of complaint against Coke bottler

Following a complaint to the Competition Commission, Coca-Cola Fortune, a large bottler of Coca-Cola products in South Africa, retained Genesis to provide expert economic analysis in order to determine whether its sole and exclusive distribution arrangements in Limpopo province could be considered anti-competitive exclusionary conduct in terms of the Competition Act .

The project team researched case precedent to demonstrate that exclusive distribution agreements can only be considered anti-competitive in narrow circumstances and that the complainant could not prove such circumstances.

The team also quantified the efficiency benefits of Coca-Cola’s sole distribution model , which was the rationale behind the company’s distribution agreements.

Following the submission of the Genesis report, the complaint was abandoned.