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Bumble Bee Pleads Guilty to Felony in Price-Fixing Conspiracy

Bumble Bee Foods, LLC has agreed to plead guilty to one felony count for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices of shelf­-stable tuna and will pay a minimum $25 ­million fine. U.S. v. Bumble Bee Foods LLC, No. 17­-CR-­249 (N.D. Cal. May 8, 2017). According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Bumble Bee conspired with other seafood companies and their executives to inflate prices for canned and pouch tuna. Two Bumble Bee executives have already pleaded guilty to criminal charges; details appear in Issue 625 of this Update.

“Today’s charge is the third to be filed—and the first to be filed against a corporate defendant—in the Antitrust Division’s ongoing investigation into price fixing among some of the largest suppliers of packaged seafood,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Andrew Finch said in a May 8, 2017, press release. “The division, along with our law enforcement colleagues, will continue to hold these companies and their executives accountable for conduct that targeted a staple in American households.”

 

Issue 634

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For decades, manufacturers, distributors and retailers at every link in the food chain have come to Shook, Hardy & Bacon to partner with a legal team that understands the issues they face in today's evolving food production industry. Shook attorneys work with some of the world's largest food, beverage and agribusiness companies to establish preventative measures, conduct internal audits, develop public relations strategies, and advance tort reform initiatives.

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