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Suspected Japanese ice cream cartel under investigation for price ... Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today. RocketNews24 Japanese Six of Japan’s biggest ice cream makers face accusations of collaborating to keep fairly priced ice cream out of consumers’ hands/stomachs. Authorities in Japan have launched an investigation into asuspected cartel. The suspected members are not members of the shadowy criminal underground, but six very well-known companies. While the group isn’t accused of selling drugs, smuggling weapons, or any other such dealings in contraband, if they were indeed doing what investigators think there were, they committed a truly heinous crime:ice cream price-fixing. On June 16, Japan’sFair Trade Commissionlaunched on-site investigations at the facilities of six major Japanese confectionery companies:Meiji, Lotte, Morinaga Seika, Morinaga Nyugyo, Ezaki Glico, and Akagi Nyugyo. All six are among Japan’s largest manufacturers and distributors of ice cream, and are supposed to be competitors (Morinaga Seika owns about 10 percent of Morinaga Nyugyo’s stock, but they’re otherwise separate companies).The Fair Trade Commission believes, though, that e…

Japan puts the heat on suspected ice cream cartel TOKYO — Summer is coming, a boom time for ice cream makers, but Japanese authorities have raided six major firms on suspicion of colluding to raise prices.

Japan Raids Ice Cream Giants in Cartel Investigation Sales of ice creams, commonly sold at convenience stores in Japan, are increasing as summer approaches.

Japan raids ice cream companies over alleged price fixing cartel Six of Japan's biggest ice cream companies are under suspicion of forming a cartel to hike up prices.

6 ice cream makers suspected of colluding to raise prices in Japan TOKYO - Japan's antitrust watchdog searched six major ice cream makers Tuesday on suspicion of colluding to raise suggested retail prices, sources familiar with the matter said. The Japan Fair Trade Commission searched the offices of Meiji Co., Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Lotte Co., Ezaki Glico Co., Morinaga & Co. and Akagi Nyugyo Co. over a possible violation of the antimonopoly law, the sources said. The six companies are suspected of exchanging information through emails and meetings over several years to coordinate the timing and size of increases in suggested retail prices for ice cream and other frozen desserts. It is the first time the commission has investigated a suspected price cartel involving ice cream, the sources said. The commission is also investigating whether the companies took advantage of inflation to raise suggested retail prices beyond what was justified by higher costs. Suggested retail prices are not binding, but retailers often use them as a guide when setting shelf prices, according to the sources. Glico said, "It is true that we are under investigation by the Fair Trade Commission. …

Japan watchdog raids 6 ice cream makers over suspected price-fixing Photo shows representative products made by six major Japanese ice cream companies suspected of colluding to raise suggested retail prices. Image: Kyodo business Japan watchdog raids 6 ice cream makers over suspected price-fixing Today 06:00 am JST Today | 06:47 am JST 3 Comments TOKYO Japan's antitrust watchdog searched six major ice cream makers Tuesday on suspicion of colluding to raise suggested retail prices, sources familiar with the matter said. The Japan Fair Trade Commission searched the offices of Meiji Co, Morinaga Milk Industry Co, Lotte Co, Ezaki Glico Co, Morinaga & Co and Akagi Nyugyo Co over a possible violation of the antimonopoly law, the sources said. The six companies are suspected of exchanging information through emails and meetings over several years to coordinate the timing and size of increases in suggested retail prices for ice cream and other frozen desserts. It is the first time the commission has investigated a suspected price cartel involving ice cream, the sources said. The commission is also investigating whether the companies took advantage of inflation to raise suggested retail pr…

Japan investigates suspected ice cream cartel | The Straits Times Meiji, Morinaga and more: Japan puts the heat on suspected ice-cream cartel Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments The Japanese authorities have raided six major ice-cream companies on suspicion of colluding to raise prices. PHOTO: AFP Published Jun 17, 2026, 03:07 PM Updated Jun 17, 2026, 03:07 PM TOKYO - Summer is coming , a boom time for ice-cream makers, but the Japanese authorities have raided six major firms on suspicion of colluding to raise prices. Among the country’s biggest ice-cream companies, the six “are suspected of colluding” to hike prices, a source familiar with the matter told AFP on June 17. Company officials are thought to have sent emails or met up for years to coordinate the timing and size of hikes, the unnamed source said. Officials from the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) on June 16 searched the head offices of Meiji, Morinaga Milk Industry, Lotte, Ezaki Glico, Morinaga & Co, and Akagi Nyugyo, according to company officials and the source. Since around 2022, the ice-cream companies have raised retail prices every year at around the same time, local media reported. Th…

Japan watchdog raids 6 ice cream makers over suspected price-fixing Photo shows representative products made by six major Japanese ice cream companies suspected of colluding to raise suggested retail prices. Image: Kyodo business Japan watchdog raids 6 ice cream makers over suspected price-fixing Today 06:00 am JST Today | 06:47 am JST 16 Comments TOKYO Japan's antitrust watchdog searched six major ice cream makers Tuesday on suspicion of colluding to raise suggested retail prices, sources familiar with the matter said. The Japan Fair Trade Commission searched the offices of Meiji Co, Morinaga Milk Industry Co, Lotte Co, Ezaki Glico Co, Morinaga & Co and Akagi Nyugyo Co over a possible violation of the antimonopoly law, the sources said. The six companies are suspected of exchanging information through emails and meetings over several years to coordinate the timing and size of increases in suggested retail prices for ice cream and other frozen desserts. It is the first time the commission has investigated a suspected price cartel involving ice cream, the sources said. The commission is also investigating whether the companies took advantage of inflation to raise suggested retail p…

Japan watchdog raids 6 ice cream makers over suspected price-fixing This combined photos taken on June 15, 2026, show buildings housing six major Japanese ice cream makers suspected of colluding to raise suggested retail prices: clockwise from top left, Meiji Co., Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Lotte Co., Akagi Nyugyo Co., Morinaga & Co., Ezaki Glico Co. (Kyodo) TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan's antitrust watchdog searched six major ice cream makers Tuesday on suspicion of colluding to raise suggested retail prices, sources familiar with the matter said. The Japan Fair Trade Commission searched the offices of Meiji Co., Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Lotte Co., Ezaki Glico Co., Morinaga & Co. and Akagi Nyugyo Co. over a possible violation of the antimonopoly law, the sources said. The six companies are suspected of exchanging information through emails and meetings over several years to coordinate the timing and size of increases in suggested retail prices for ice cream and other frozen desserts. It is the first time the commission has investigated a suspected price cartel involving ice cream, the sources said. The commission is also investigating whether the companies took advantage of inflatio…

Japan watchdog raids 6 ice cream makers over suspected price-fixing TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan's antitrust watchdog searched six major ice cream makers Tuesday on suspicion of colluding to raise suggested retail prices, so

Japan's FTC raids six ice cream makers over allegedly creating price ... The Fair Trade Commission on Tuesday conducted on-site inspections for six ice cream makers, including Meiji, for allegedly forming a price-fixing cartel, informed sources said. The FTC will analyze seized materials and interview relevant individuals to investigate the suspected violation of the antimonopoly law. The other five companies are Morinaga Milk Industry, Lotte, Morinaga & Co., Ezaki Glico and Akagi Nyugyo. According to the sources, the six companies are suspected of raising the suggested retail prices of ice cream and some other products in increments of ¥10 based on information exchanged among executives from several years ago. The price fixing appears aimed at securing profits for each company, rather than responding to rising ingredient costs. The higher suggested retail prices may have affected wholesale prices and raised costs for consumers. In a time of both misinformation and too much information,quality journalism is more crucial than ever.By subscribing, you can help us get the story right. With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your f…

Japan puts the heat on suspected ice cream cartel - Latest News This illustrative picture shows ice cream in a convenience store in Tokyo on June 17, 2026. (AFP) Summer is coming, a boom time forice creammakers, but Japanese authorities have raided six major firms on suspicion of colluding to raise prices. Among the country's biggest ice cream firms, the six "are suspected of colluding" to hike prices, a source familiar with the matter told AFP on June 17. Company officials are thought to have sent emails or met up for years to coordinate the timing and size of hikes, the unnamed source said. Officials from the theJapanFair Trade Commission (JFTC) searched the head offices on Tuesday of Meiji Co., Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Lotte Co., Ezaki Glico Co., Morinaga & Co., and Akagi Nyugyo Co., according to company officials and the source. Since around 2022, the ice cream companies have raised retail prices every year at around the same time, local media reported. The JFTC is also investigating whether the companies took advantage of inflation to raise prices beyond what was justified by a spike in raw ingredient costs, according to Kyodo News. If the JFTC concludes that there …

Japan raids ice cream giants over price-fixing allegations The investigation on alleged cartel pricing of ice cream comes as Japan faces record summer temperatures.