The French Competition Authority (Autorité de la concurrence) has launched an investigation into Aura, a purchasing alliance formed by major retailers Intermarché, Auchan, and Plesio (formerly known as Casino). According to a communiqué released on Thursday, November 12, 2026, the regulator's investigative services have notified the members of the alliance of a report identifying several practices that could potentially cause significant harm to competition Les Échos. [2]
The suspected anti-competitive behavior is believed to affect both the upstream market—specifically procurement and supply—and the downstream market involving retail distribution. The regulator noted that these practices were not offset by a sufficient contribution to economic progress Les Échos. The Aura alliance was established in September 2024 and was designed to operate for a period of ten years L'AGEFI. [2] [3]
In response to the notification, the three companies have been granted a two-month window to submit their observations and, if necessary, propose corrective measures. The Competition Authority emphasized that the current findings do not prejudge the final decision that will be made by the authority's college Les Échos. [2]
Contacted by AFP, the Mousquetaires-Intermarché group stated it would review the report and present its observations during the contradictory procedure. The distributor argued that such purchasing alliances only involve large mid-cap companies (ETIs) and multinationals producing well-known brands. Furthermore, the group claimed these alliances help offer more competitive prices to consumers, thereby helping to preserve the purchasing power of French citizens Les Échos. Auchan and Plesio did not provide comments to AFP Les Échos. [2]
This investigation follows an analysis procedure announced in January 2026 targeting two major purchasing centers in the retail sector: Aura and Concordis (the latter comprising Carrefour and Coopérative U). The goal of this analysis was to evaluate the effects of such centers on distributors, suppliers, producers, and consumers. A competitive assessment for Aura was expected to be made public by the end of 2026, while the assessment for Concordis was slated for 2027 Les Échos. [2]
The timing of this notification is particularly sensitive, as it comes less than three weeks before the start of annual commercial negotiations between retailers and industrialists. These negotiations, which determine shelf prices (excluding private labels), are scheduled to begin on December 1 and conclude on March 1. This year's talks are expected to be especially tense due to rising energy costs and an ongoing agricultural crisis Les Échos. [2]
For several years, French retail giants have increasingly turned to purchasing alliances to gain more leverage against global agribusiness multinationals. However, these moves have drawn criticism from industrial players and some French political figures, who accuse retailers of attempting to bypass French law by utilizing European purchasing centers based abroad, which they argue leads to poorer remuneration for farmers—a claim the retailers deny Les Échos. [2]
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- 20 Minutes Grande distribution : Intermarché, Auchan et Casino soupçonnés de pratiques anticoncurrentielles
- lesechos.fr Distribution : l'alliance d'Intermarché, Auchan et Casino dans le viseur de l'Autorité de la concurrence
- agefi.fr L’alliance aux achats Aura est dans le collimateur de l’Autorité de la concurrence
