Key facts
- South Korea's Fair Trade Commission will impose a record 747.6 billion-won fine on four starch producers.
- The companies are Daesang Corp., Sajo CPK Ltd., Samyang Corp., and CJ CheilJedang Corp.
- The price rigging involved starch and starch sugar products used in food and manufacturing.
- The collusion occurred from May 2018 to October 2025.
- The FTC also ordered price resets and ongoing reporting for three years.
South Korea's fair trade watchdog has decided to impose a record 747.6 billion won (US$488.7 million) fine on four starch producers for colluding to fix prices. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) found that Daesang Corp., Sajo CPK Ltd., Samyang Corp., and CJ CheilJedang Corp. fixed prices of starch and starch sugars from May 2018 to October 2025.
The FTC stated that the fine is the largest amount ever levied for a single price-rigging case. Starch and starch sugar products are essential ingredients in a wide range of foodstuffs, including confectionery, bread, noodles, beverages, and beer, as well as in industrial applications like paper and steel production. The watchdog noted that price hikes in these products have significant chain effects across various industries.
According to the FTC, executive-level officials from the four companies reached a consensus on overall price targets, with further details discussed in subsequent working-level meetings. The commission also mandated that the companies reset their prices to pre-collusion levels and report any price changes to authorities every six months for the next three years. This measure was implemented considering the prolonged nature of the collusion, which lasted over seven years, and the companies' dominant market positions, which make future price rigging highly probable.
The four firms collectively hold a substantial share of the market, accounting for 95.7 percent of business-to-business sales for starch and 86.4 percent for starch sugars. The FTC highlighted that the industry's requirement for large-scale equipment limits new entrants, allowing these companies to maintain stable market shares for two decades. Furthermore, the firms jointly purchased raw materials like corn, leading to similar production cost structures and standardized product quality.