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. We are cooperating fully.”

Japan’s market for ice cream and other frozen desserts reached a record 663.1 billion yen ($4 billion) in fiscal 2025, ended March, according to an industry group.

The market reached a record high for the sixth straight year, driven partly by increased demand during an extremely hot summer and price hikes.

In 1997, the commission found Haagen-Dazs Japan Inc. in violation of the antimonopoly law for pressuring retailers not to discount products from suggested retail prices.