Saving Seafood

Proposed settlement from Chicken of the Sea in class-action suit rejected by judge

January 27, 2020 — A proposed settlement between a class of commercial food-preparers and Chicken of the Sea, one of the three U.S. canned tuna companies found to have conspired to fix the prices of their products, has been rejected by the judge overhearing the case.

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California Judge Janis L. Sammartino rejected a payment of USD 6.5 million (EUR 5.9 million), saying it is not clear the settlement provides enough money to those harmed by the price-fixing.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Bumble Bee hoping to pay executive bonuses, over objections of creditors

January 10, 2020 — The creditors of Bumble Bee Foods, which filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2019, have asked the judge overseeing the case to prevent the company from paying year-end bonuses to some of its employees.

Bumble Bee is hoping to pay 37 of its employees enrolled in its Key Employee Incentive Program (KEIP) – created after the company filed for bankruptcy – between USD 1.3 million and USD 3.2 million (EUR 1.16 million and EUR 2.88 million) as a performance bonus for helping the company maintain cash flow during its difficult past few months.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Bumble Bee’s Chris Lischewski convicted of fixing prices of canned tuna

December 4, 2019 — Christopher Lischewski, the former president and CEO of Bumble Bee Foods, was convicted on 3 December, 2019, of helping to orchestrate a price-fixing conspiracy between Bumble Bee, Chicken of the Sea, and StarKist, the so-called “Big Three” players in the U.S. canned tuna sector.

Lischewski was found guilty of one count of price-fixing by a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of USD 1 million (EUR 900,000). His sentencing has been set for 8 April, 2020. Lischewski’s conviction may also open him up as a target of civil lawsuits filed by parties who overpaid for canned tuna as a result of the price-fixing, according to Eric Snyder, chairman of the bankruptcy practice at Wilk Auslander, a New York City-based law firm.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Inside Bumble Bee’s long summer of selling itself

November 29, 2019 — On 21 November, the same day it filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Bumble Bee Foods announced it had entered into an agreement with FCF Co., its primary supplier of tuna, which agreed to acquire the company’s assets for approximately USD 925 million (EUR 836 million).

In a statement accompanying the announcement, Bumble Bee President and Chief Executive Officer Jan Tharp said she “anticipates that the transaction will move swiftly and close within 60 to 90 days.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

FCF swoops in for Bumble Bee as it files for bankruptcy

November 22, 2019 — Taiwan-based Fong Chun Formosa (FCF) Fishery Company has entered into an asset purchase agreement with Bumble Bee Foods, which filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. state of Delaware.

The 25-page filing, made on 21 November, includes more detail about FCF’s stalking-horse bid for the company, which was first reported by Bloomberg to be around USD 925 million (EUR 836 million).

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Chris Lischewski trial enters second week as key witnesses testify

November 19, 2019 — The trial of Chris Lischewski is now in its second week, with a panel of 16 jurors having heard six days of testimony from many of the witnesses deemed most important to the government’s price-fixing case against the former Bumble Bee president and CEO.

Lischewski is on trial for a single charge of engaging in a conspiracy to fix the prices of canned tuna in the United States from 2011 to 2013. The case is being heard by District Court Judge Edward M. Chen of the Northern District of California.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

More Norwegian salmon producers receive subpoenas in US DOJ antitrust investigation

November 15, 2019 — Lerøy Seafood, Grieg Seafood, and SalMar each received subpoenas from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday, 15 November, according to press releases from the three Norwegian salmon farming firms.

The subpoenas are part of a criminal investigation by the DOJ’s Antitrust Division into allegations of price-fixing in Norway’s farmed-raised salmon industry, according to the releases.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

StarKist ordered to pay USD 100 million fine for role in tuna price-fixing

September 12, 2019 — StarKist & Company has been ordered to pay a criminal fine of USD 100 million (EUR 90.3 million) for its role in a tuna price-fixing conspiracy, the statutory maximum fine.

The decision, which was announced by the Department of Justice (DOJ) on 11 September, comes after the court and the company wrangled over the monetary amount of the fine. StarKist’s attorneys had been pushing to have the fine lowered to USD 50 million (EUR 45.1 million), calling the decision “life or death” for the company, while prosecutors had been pushing for a full fine based on the company’s recent investment in TechPack Solutions, an India-based can and bottle technology firm.

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US plaintiffs claim Russian ban on Norwegian salmon prompted price collusion

August 21, 2019 — Norwegian salmon farmers cannot claim strong demand has brought spot prices up in recent years, given the size of the hole in the market left by Russia’s import ban, according to new claims from US plaintiffs filing a price-fixing suit.

A total of six US distributors are listed on the latest filing, made on Aug. 19, claiming that Norway’s farmers have colluded to charge higher prices for salmon.

Plaintiffs Euclid Fish Company, Euro USA, Schneider’s Fish and Sea Food Corporation, Beacon Fisheries, Cape Florida Seafood, The Fishing Line, and Hesh’s Seafood — “individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated” — have suit several salmon farmers alleging they were damaged by “price collusion”.

The full list of defendants in the US lawsuit are: Norway’s Mowi — and its North American subsidiaries Marine Harvest USA, Marine Harvest Canada and Ducktrap River of Maine; Norway-based Grieg and its British Columbia, Canada, arm, Grieg Seafood BC; Norway’s Bremnes Seashore as well as Ocean Quality, Ocean Quality North America, Ocean Quality USA and Ocean Quality Premium Brands, entities that are a partnership between Bremnes and Grieg; SalMar; Leroy and Leroy Seafood USA; and Scottish Sea Farms, a venture jointly owned by SalMar and Leroy.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Restaurant, catering group nears settlement with Chicken of the Sea on price-fixing suit

May 28, 2019 — A group of restaurants and catering companies have reached a USD 6.5 million (EUR 5.8 million) agreement with San Diego, California, U.S.A.-based Chicken of the Sea and its parent company, Thai Union, to settle a lawsuit alleging price-fixing.

The lawsuit stems from a price-fixing scandal in the U.S. canned tuna market exposed by a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation in which Chicken of the Sea served as the whistleblower. The scandal led to prosecution of Chicken of the Sea’s primary co-conspirators, Bumble Bee Foods and StarKist. Both companies pleaded guilty to criminal charges in cases brought by the DOJ.

Chicken of the Sea’s potential settlement with the restaurants and catering companies, proposed Friday, 24 May, still must be approved by U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California Judge Janis L. Sammartino, who has not yet formally certified the grouping of affected companies involved in the agreement as an official class in the lawsuit. The parties suing claim to represent companies that indirectly purchased packages of tuna in 40-ounce sizes or greater from DOT Foods, Sysco, US Foods, Sam’s Club, Walmart, or Costco from June 2011 through December 2016.

Parties in the so-called “commercial food preparers” class involved in the proposed settlement include Capitol Hill Supermarket, Janet Machen, Thyme Cafe & Market, Simon-Hindi LLC, LesGo Personal Chef, Maquoketa Care Center, A-1 Diner, Francis T. Enterprises d/b/a Erbert & Gerbert’s, Harvesters Enterprises, LLC d/b/a Harvester’s Seafood and Steakhouse, Dutch Village Restaurant, Painted Plate Catering, GlowFisch Hospitality d/b/a Five Loaves Cafe, Rushin Gold LLC d/b/a The Gold Rush, Erbert & Gerbert, Inc., Groucho’s Deli of Raleigh, Sandee’ s Catering, Groucho ‘s Deli of Five Points, and Confetti’s Ice Cream Shoppe.

Read the full story at Seafood Source