The ACCC began civil action in September 2025 against four vegetable growing companies and three individuals, accusing the group of working together to illegally fix the price of fresh produce sold at Aldi stores in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland between 2018 and 2024.
The ACCC said Perfection Fresh had admitted to engaging in cartel conduct on 11 occasions between 2019 and 2020. The company has agreed to pay a $12 million penalty, subject to Federal Court approval at a later date.
The case against the remaining suppliers, Hydro Produce, Veli Velisha Fresh Produce, Velisha National Farms and M Fragapane & Sons, is continuing.
The company admitted to price fixing on 11 occasions, but the court can penalise only 10 instances: nine contraventions and one attempted contravention. The other falls outside the period in which a penalty can apply.
In a statement, ACCC Commissioner Luke Woodward said cartel conduct "undermines competition".
"[It] can increase prices, harming consumers and raising the cost of doing business," he said. "Enforcing cartel laws and protecting competition in the supply of fresh food are ongoing priorities for the ACCC."
Perfection Fresh Australia, which is based in NSW, supplies produce including cauliflower, broccoli, iceberg lettuce, Brussels sprouts, broccolini and celery to all states and territories.
A Perfection Fresh Australia spokesperson said the company took full responsibility for its actions.
"We deeply regret any impact it may have had on our relationships and are working hard to rebuild trust with our stakeholders," the spokesperson said. "We have fully cooperated with the ACCC since becoming aware of the issue and have taken significant steps to strengthen our leadership, governance and compliance systems."