Frequently asked questions

Under this Act, unfair trading practices are transactions or acts carried out by only one party, the buyer, which deviate significantly from good commercial practice, are contrary to the principles of good faith and fair dealing, and are imposed unilaterally on the seller. This is because the buyer is usually in a stronger bargaining position. Although a similar situation or practice is not ruled out for sellers, who are also operators in the food supply chain and as important as buyers, this is an unlikely and extremely marginal situation that does not need further clarification in addition to existing legislation (Law of Obligations Act) and legal remedies (civil court).

This Act applies to the buyer or seller of agricultural products and foodstuff established in the EU (i.e. a legal person) or resident in an EU Member State (i.e. a natural person). This means that at least one of the parties to the transaction – either the buyer or the seller – must be established in an EU Member State or their residence must be located in a Member State of the European Union.

For the purposes of this Act, a buyer of agricultural products and foodstuff is a person who buys agricultural products and foodstuff, including a governmental authority or an agency administered by a governmental authority, a local government agency or an agency administered by an authority or an association thereof, or a public legal person or an association thereof.

For the purposes of this Act, a seller is a person, including a producer or supplier organisation or an association thereof, who sells agricultural products and foodstuff. The term ‘person’ includes both natural and legal persons. Pursuant to the General Part of the Civil Code Act, persons are natural and legal persons. A natural person is a person, including a self-employed person, and a legal person is a subject of law founded pursuant to law, whether in private or public law, such as a commercial association, a company such as a public limited company, a private limited company.

This Act does not apply if a legal person buys agricultural products and foodstuff for their own use, for example to offer to customers or their employees (for example, tea, coffee, and candy for consumption on the premises of a company or as a so-called business gift to partners). The end user of agricultural products or foodstuff who does not resell the agricultural products or foodstuff for the purpose of obtaining income is not a buyer of agricultural products or foodstuff pursuant to this Act.

The Act entered into force on 1 November 2021, and contracts of sale entered into before the entry into force of the Act on Combating Unfair Trading Practices in the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain must have been brought into conformity with the Act by 21 September 2022.