ACCC gives go ahead for Accolade to acquire Pernod wine brands

Accolade Wines has been given the green light to buy several wine brands, including Jacob's Creek, from Pernod Richard Winemakers.

The ACCC, Australia's business regulatory body, said today that it will not oppose the proposed acquisition of Pernod Ricard Winemakers by Australian Wine HoldCo Limited, through its subsidiary Accolade.

Accolade’s acquisition relates to Pernod Ricard Winemakers’ BrandCo division, which owns and manages a portfolio of Australian, New Zealand and Spanish wines including Campo Viejo, St Hugo, Church Road, Stoneleigh, and Jacob’s Creek.

Accolade already owns major wine brands including Berri Estates, Grant Burge, Petaluma, Hardy's and St Hallett.

“Based on our investigation, we consider the proposed acquisition is unlikely to substantially lessen competition in wine processing and packaging services, and similarly is unlikely to substantially impact competition in the wholesale supply of wine,” ACCC commissioner Dr Philip Williams said in a statement.

“We considered that if the acquisition went ahead, a number of other businesses will continue to offer competing processing services and also wine,” he said.

Information and feedback gathered during the ACCC’s investigation also indicated that the acquisition is unlikely to substantially lessen competition in the market for the purchase of wine grapes.

“We found that the acquisition would not materially alter competition in grape acquisition markets where Accolade and Pernod Ricard currently overlap,” Williams said.

Concerns relating to whether Accolade, following the acquisition, could disadvantage rival winemakers’ access to processing or packaging services were also examined by the ACCC.

The ACCC concluded that Accolade is unlikely to have the incentive or ability to engage in this conduct, and that even if such conduct occurred it would be unlikely to substantially lessen competition in the wholesale supply of wine.

The ACCC heard from a range of market participants, including grape growers, competing winemakers, wine retailers, and industry bodies during its investigation.