A merger between supermarket giants Sainsbury’s and Asda would lead to an increase in prices and leave shoppers worse off, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said.

For this reason, it has blocked the proposed merger between the supermarkets, which could have resulted in the creation of the UK’s largest supermarket chain.

“It’s our responsibility to protect the millions of people who shop at Sainsbury’s and Asda every week,” Stuart McIntosh, chair of the CMA inquiry group said.

“Following our in-depth investigation, we have found this deal would lead to increased prices, reduced quality and choice of products, or a poorer shopping experience for all of their UK shoppers.”

Response

There had been previous concerns over the merger outlined by the CMA, and the supermarkets had issued a joint statement saying they disagreed with the CMA’s findings. They said that they believed the CMA’s analysis contained “significant errors”.

Irish concerns

There had been concerns that if the merger had been approved that Irish food products could face price cuts.

Bord Bia and Food and Drink Ireland had expressed their concerns.

Sainsbury’s one of the main sellers of Irish beef in the UK.

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