The Belgian Competition Council bans a price-coordination mechanism in the retail bakery markets (VEBIC)

I. Parties VEBIC is a professional association which comprises as its members all the Flemish provincial associations of bakers. Amongst the various activities it carries out on their behalf, VEBIC publishes a magazine entitled “Passie”. II. Facts Until 1 July 2004, the price of breads in Belgium was set by a binding regulatory instrument. When, as a result of liberalisation measures, the price regulation mechanism was abandoned, VEBIC decided to set a “bread price index” which purportedly sought to inform VEBIC's members of the evolution of various costs (raw materials, energy, labour, etc) and, in turn, helped them calculate the price of bread. The index and its components were regularly