(Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission sued Pepsi on Friday for offering preferential pricing to a larger retailer, whom a source familiar with the matter confirmed was Walmart.
The practices fed high consumer prices by leaving other retailers, from large grocery chains to independent convenience stores, to pay more, the FTC said.
The lawsuit filed in New York alleges that the soft drink manufacturer violated the Robinson-Patman Act, a law that went largely unenforced for decades by the federal government.
Walmart and PepsiCo did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for a comment.
"The FTC's action will help ensure all grocers and other businesses--no matter the size--can get a fair shake and compete on the merits of their skill, efficiency, and talent," outgoing FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a statement.
The FTC's two Republican commissioners, including Andrew Ferguson, who will chair the commission after President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Monday, voted against the case.
(Reporting by Jody Godoy in California; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
PepsiCo, Inc. is one of the worldwide leaders in producing non-alcoholic beverages and snacks. Net sales break down by area of activity as follows:
- North America (60%): sale of beverages (50.3% of net sales; sodas, concentrated juices, water, tea and coffee-based beverages; Aquafina, Diet Mountain Dew, Diet Pepsi, Gatorade, Gatorade Zero, Mountain Dew, Pepsi, Propel brands, etc.), snacks (44.9%; chips, tortillas and pretzels; Lay's, Doritos, Tostitos, Cheetos, Fritos, Ruffles, etc.), and cereals (4.8%; ready-to-eat cereals, rice, wheat, etc.);
- Europe (15.1%): sale of snacks (Cheetos, Chipita, Doritos, Lay's, Ruffles and Walkers brands) and beverages (7UP, Diet Pepsi, Lubimy Sad, Mirinda, Pepsi and Pepsi Max);
- Latin America (12.8%): sales of snacks (Cheetos, Doritos, Emperador, Lay's, Mabel, Marias Gamesa, Ruffles, Sabritas, Saladitas and Tostitos brands) and beverages (7UP, Gatorade, H2oh!, Manzanita Sol, Mirinda, Pepsi, Pepsi Black, San Carlos and Toddy);
- Africa/Middle East/South Asia (6.8%): sale of snacks (Chipsy, Doritos, Kurkure, Lay's, Sasko, Spekko and White Star brands) and beverages (7UP, Aquafina, Mirinda, Mountain Dew and Pepsi);
- Asia/Pacific/Australia/New Zealand (5.3%): sale of snacks (BaiCaoWei, Cheetos, Doritos, Lay's and Smith's brands), beverages and syrups (7UP, Aquafina, Mirinda, Mountain Dew, Pepsi and Sting).
Net sales are distributed geographically as follows: the United States (56.3%), Mexico (7.8%), Russia (4.2%), Canada (4.1%), China (3%), the United Kingdom (2.2%), South Africa (2%), Brazil (1.9%) and other (18.5%).
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