SEOUL, April 17, 2026 — South Korea’s Korea Fair Trade Commission has fined two meat slaughterhouse operators in South Jeolla Province for colluding to increase slaughter fees for black goats, a practice the regulator said harmed farmers and distributors.
The authority imposed corrective orders and combined fines of 12 million won (about $8,700) on the companies after finding they had agreed to raise slaughtering charges between May and July 2024.
Agreement to raise slaughter fees
According to the regulator, the two operators — Gaon Livestock and Green Black Goat — agreed on May 20, 2024 to increase slaughter fees for black goats across several weight categories.
The companies planned to raise fees by 5,000 to 10,000 won depending on carcass weight, with the increases scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2024.
However, after farmers and distributors strongly opposed the increases and amid concerns about a potential competition investigation, the companies reached a second agreement in June to slightly differentiate their prices while maintaining the overall price increase.
Collusion eventually abandoned
Despite the adjustments, backlash from slaughterhouse users continued. One of the companies eventually withdrew from the agreement and began charging lower slaughter fees from August 1, 2024, effectively breaking the arrangement.
The competition authority concluded that the agreement constituted price fixing in violation of South Korea’s Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act, which prohibits businesses from jointly determining prices or otherwise restricting competition.
Market significance
Authorities said the case was significant because it involved collusion in a service directly linked to goat meat prices, which can affect both livestock farmers and distributors.
South Jeolla Province plays a key role in the sector and ranks first nationwide in the number of goats raised, making the region particularly important for the industry.
The regulator said it will continue to strengthen oversight of cartels in food and everyday consumer sectors, noting that such conduct undermines fair competition and harms multiple actors across the supply chain.
