Case C-581/23, Beevers Kaas: Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 8 May 2025 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Hof van beroep te Antwerpen – Belgium) – Beevers Kaas BV v Albert Heijn België NV, Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV, Albert Heijn BV, Ahold België BV (Reference for a preliminary ruling – Competition – Agreements, decisions and concerted practices – Prohibition – Vertical agreements – Article 101(3) TFEU – Regulation (EU) No 330/2010 – Block exemption – Article 4(b)(i) – Hardcore restriction that removes the benefit of that exemption – Exception – Exclusive distribution agreements – Restriction of active sales in an exclusive territory – Concept of agreement – Concurrence of wills between the supplier and its buyers – Proof – Exclusive territory allocated to a buyer – Absence of active sales by other buyers in that territory)
Date: 2025-05-08
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: cartel, control of restrictive practices, exclusive distribution agreement, restriction on competition, sale, supplier








C_202503378EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/3378


30.6.2025






Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 8 May 2025 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Hof van beroep te Antwerpen – Belgium) – Beevers Kaas BV v Albert Heijn België NV, Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV, Albert Heijn BV, Ahold België BV


(Case C-581/23,
                (1)
Beevers Kaas)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Competition - Agreements, decisions and concerted practices - Prohibition - Vertical agreements - Article 101(3) TFEU - Regulation (EU) No 330/2010 - Block exemption - Article 4(b)(i) - Hardcore restriction that removes the benefit of that exemption - Exception - Exclusive distribution agreements - Restriction of active sales in an exclusive territory - Concept of ‘agreement’ - Concurrence of wills between the supplier and its buyers - Proof - Exclusive territory allocated to a buyer - Absence of active sales by other buyers in that territory)
(C/2025/3378)
Language of the case: Dutch

Referring court

Hof van beroep te Antwerpen

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicant: Beevers Kaas BV

Defendants: Albert Heijn België NV, Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV, Albert Heijn BV, Ahold België BV

Intervening party: B. A. Coöperatieve Zuivelonderneming Cono

Operative part of the judgment







1.


Article 4(b)(i) of Commission Regulation (EU) No 330/2010 of 20 April 2010 on the application of Article 101(3) [TFEU] to categories of vertical agreements and concerted practices
must be interpreted as meaning that, where a supplier has allocated an exclusive territory to one of its buyers, the mere finding that the other buyers of that supplier do not engage in active sales in that territory is not sufficient to establish the existence of an agreement between that supplier and those other buyers concerning the ban on active sales in that territory, for the purpose of applying that provision.










2.


Article 4(b)(i) of Regulation No 330/2010
must be interpreted as meaning that the benefit of the exception provided for in that provision is granted for the period for which it is shown that there is acquiescence by a supplier’s buyers to the supplier’s invitation not to make active sales in the exclusive territory allocated to another buyer.






(1)  OJ C C/2023/1435.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/3378/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)