PARIS, Feb 14 (Reuters) - French retailer Carrefour has had its offices searched as part of an investigation into its commercial practices, the company said on Sunday, two days after the government warned companies against squeezing further price cuts from farmers.
Milk and meat producers in France have held repeated demonstrations in protest at being forced to operate at a loss because of overcapacity and aggressive pricing pressure from retailers.
A Carrefour spokeswoman told Reuters that its offices in Massy, south of Paris, had been searched on Tuesday by authorities investigating some of its ongoing commercial negotiatons.
"It is of utmost importance for Carrefour to apply current regulations and if mistakes have been made the company will take the necessary measures," she said.
In a joint statement on Friday, Agriculture Minister Stephane Le Foll and Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron warned retailers and the food industry not to push for lower prices from farmers and reminded them that companies found to have employed abusive trading practices could be fined up to 5 percent of their revenue.
(Reporting by Geert De Clercq; Editing by David Goodman) ((geert.declercq@thomsonreuters.com; +33 14949 5343; Reuters Messaging: Twitter: @gvdeclercq))
Milk and meat producers in France have held repeated demonstrations in protest at being forced to operate at a loss because of overcapacity and aggressive pricing pressure from retailers.
A Carrefour spokeswoman told Reuters that its offices in Massy, south of Paris, had been searched on Tuesday by authorities investigating some of its ongoing commercial negotiatons.
"It is of utmost importance for Carrefour to apply current regulations and if mistakes have been made the company will take the necessary measures," she said.
In a joint statement on Friday, Agriculture Minister Stephane Le Foll and Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron warned retailers and the food industry not to push for lower prices from farmers and reminded them that companies found to have employed abusive trading practices could be fined up to 5 percent of their revenue.
(Reporting by Geert De Clercq; Editing by David Goodman) ((geert.declercq@thomsonreuters.com; +33 14949 5343; Reuters Messaging: Twitter: @gvdeclercq))
