The Unfair Commercial Practices Act has failed to achieve its intended objectives in the dairy market

The Seimas Committee on Rural Affairs considered the draft Law on the Prohibition of Unfair Trading Practices in the Dairy Sector, the drafters of which note that a marked imbalance in bargaining power still persists in the Lithuanian dairy sector – the majority of milk producers are small-scale and have little cooperation, whilst the milk processing market remains highly concentrated.

It is also acknowledged that the Act on the Prohibition of Unfair Practices, which has been in force to date, has not achieved its intended objectives in practice, and its application has given rise to legal uncertainties.

The new draft law proposes to regulate the principles of milk pricing more clearly, to establish the procedure for setting milk purchase prices, the procedure for applying supplements, premiums and deductions, to establish a list of prohibited unfair practices, and to increase market and price transparency.

It is envisaged that compliance with the law would be monitored by the Agricultural Agency and the State Food and Veterinary Service. Stricter sanctions would be imposed for identified infringements, the severity of which would depend on the milk purchaser’s turnover.

It is hoped that the new legislation will increase transparency in the milk market, reduce the number of cases of unfair trading practices and contribute to a fairer distribution of income throughout the milk supply chain.

During the deliberations on the draft law, a member of the Chamber of Agriculture – the Lithuanian Association of Agricultural Cooperatives “Kooperacijos kelias”, which, as early as 8 June 2026, submitted comments and proposals for improving the draft, emphasising the need to ensure clear, transparent and balanced legal regulation that would effectively strengthen milk producers’ bargaining positions and promote cooperation in the dairy sector.