Mowi denies engaging in price-fixing or other anti-competitive activities.
Last night, reports came in that the American fish distributor Euclid Fish Company is to sue en mass Mowi, SalMar, Lerøy, Bremnes Seashore, Grieg Seafood and Ocean Quality (the latter being owned by Grieg Seafood and Bremnes Seashore).
According to Euclid Fish Co, they are accused of unlawfully coordinating salmon prices that have negatively affected American fish buyers.
Distortive
Mowi firmly rejects that the company has operated such a price collaboration.
“We have been informed that an American company has proceeded in mass litigation against several Norwegian and Scottish fish farming companies, including Mowi,” said Mowi communications director Ola Helge Hjetland to SalmonBusiness.
“We are looking into the lawsuit, but it may look like it is based on the investigations that the European Commission has going on that Norwegian fish farming companies have been engaged in price cooperation or other anti-competitive activity. We have neither been involved in price collaboration nor any other anti-competitive activity and for this reason believe that the charges in the mass lawsuit are, for our part, unfounded,” said Hjetland.
Undermines
Grieg Seafood also came early and rejected the issue.
“We are not aware of any anti-competitive behaviour, neither in Norway, the EU or the USA. We are fully cooperating with the EU Commission in this case,” Grieg Seafood head of communication Kristina Furnes wrote to SalmonBusiness to on Wednesday evening.
Lerøy, SalMar and Bremnes Seashore have so far not commented.
