Overview
- This week investigators from the Japan Fair Trade Commission carried out on‑site inspections of six leading ice cream firms as part of a probe into suspected price‑fixing.
- The companies inspected are Meiji, Morinaga Milk Industry, Morinaga & Co., Lotte, Ezaki Glico and Akagi Nyugyo, and each has said it will cooperate with the inquiry.
- Media reports, citing anonymous sources, allege senior managers coordinated multiple price increases over several years and raised prices by about 5–10% on some products, but those claims remain unconfirmed.
- The JFTC has declined to release a public statement and no formal findings or penalties have been announced as the investigation continues.
- The probe arrives after record sector sales in 2025 and comes into focus because suggested retail prices strongly shape shelf prices in Japan, so any proven collusion could have raised costs for consumers and prompted wider market scrutiny.