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Banvit, one of Türkiye’s largest poultry producers and owned by Qatari-Brazilian joint venture TBQ Foods, has been fined ₺947 million ($22.77 million) following an antitrust probe conducted by the Turkish Competition Authority, the company announced on Monday.
In a disclosure filed with the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP), the company said the penalty was imposed for violating Article 4 of Türkiye’s Competition Law, which prohibits practices that may directly or indirectly harm competition within a sector.
The company is accused of lacking transparency in its pricing practices, with regulators alleging that advance sharing of price lists and delayed implementation of updated sales prices created a system that undermined competition and misled market participants.
Banvit stated that it is considering paying the fine within the legal timeframe to benefit from a 25% early payment discount.
Headquartered in the northwestern province of Balikesir, Banvit is also one of Türkiye’s largest food producers, exporting its products to more than 10 countries in regions including the Middle East and the Balkans.
Founded in 1968, the company was acquired by TBQ Foods in 2017 for $270 million. According to its latest financial report, Banvit posted a net loss of ₺277.36 million in the second quarter of this year.
Banvit is listed on Türkiye’s stock exchange, Borsa Istanbul, under the ticker symbol BANVT.
The antitrust authority’s decision extends beyond Banvit, covering 13 companies in the white meat sector. In total, the Competition Board imposed administrative fines amounting to ₺3.7 billion ($89 million). Five firms that applied for reconciliation during the investigation received reduced fines totaling ₺1.02 billion. The remaining eight companies were found guilty of exchanging competitively sensitive information, resulting in penalties of ₺2.67 billion.
In addition to the fines, the authority ordered changes in industry practices. Poultry producers and suppliers will now be required to apply updated sales prices immediately upon disclosure to customers, including resellers. The decision also ends the practice of forward-dated price lists, which the regulator said created a mechanism for sharing competitively sensitive information in advance.
According to the authority, the measures aim to restore competitive pricing in the poultry market and safeguard consumer interests.
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