Legality of membership by brewer in beer wholesalers’ trade association
75 F.T.C. 1119 · Apr. 18, 1969 · Digest No. 336
source volume section (75 F.T.C. 1119)
Text is machine-OCR of the printed volume and may contain errors. Advisory opinions are the Commission's views on proposed conduct, not binding orders.
No. 336. Legality of membership by brewer in beer wholesalers’ trade association.
Responding to an application from a beer wholesalers’ association the Commission advised the applicant that: * * * it is not illegal per se for suppliers to belong to a wholesalers’ trade association, but particular care must be exercised to avoid violation of law. In the case of an industry where distributors are in a weak bargaining position, vis-a-vis, their suppliers and where the industry on the supply side is concentrated, these circumstances may lead to vertical restraints on the distributors violative of the antitrust laws for example in the area of pricing decisions. These considerations may apply in the case of the beer industry. The necessity of preserving its members’ independence in making business decisions should, of course, be taken into consideration by trade association when they formulate membership policies.
“The Commission further advised the applicant that it is not
a violation of the antitrust laws to exclude suppliers from membership in a wholesalers’ organization.” (File No. 693 7086, released April 18, 1969.) , oe