Two proposed class actions in the United States name two Canadian food companies as alleged members of the “potato cartel” accused of a years-long campaign to fix prices for frozen products.
The lawsuits, which have not yet been certified, were filed last week in U.S. District Court in Illinois and name McCain Foods of Canada Ltd. and Cavendish Farms, a subsidiary of J.D. Irving Ltd., along with U.S.-based Lamb Weston Holdings and JR. Simplot Company
The proposed class actions allege that each of the four companies, which are estimated to represent as much as 98 percent of the market for frozen potato products, “asserted to fix prices” for these products “above competitive levels.”
“Armed with the same access to each other’s data on prices and other sensitive information, as well as a direct line of communication with each other, the potato cartel is synchronously moving prices upward — hurting all potato buyers in the process.” Of the allegations.
Products in the alleged scheme include frozen French fries, French fries, and French fries.
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Prices for frozen potato products rose 47 percent between July 2022 and July 2024, according to the lawsuit filed Friday on behalf of supermarket chain Redner’s Markets Inc. Meanwhile, the four defendants’ input costs steadily declined, the lawsuit claims.
“The price increases for frozen potato products in 2021 and 2022 were not a coincidence. Instead, Defendants imposed identical, concurrent, or near-concurrent price increases on their customers,” Redner’s lawsuit alleges.
A separate lawsuit was filed Sunday on behalf of Alexander Gouveia, a consumer who lives in Virginia. This lawsuit also names marketing group Potatoes USA and analytics company Circana as part of the proposed class action.
The lawsuits seek damages on behalf of all consumers and businesses who purchased frozen potato products from the defendants in the United States from 2021 to the present, as well as an end to the alleged conduct.
Global News has reached out to the manufacturers of the four potato products mentioned in the lawsuits for comment on these allegations. Only McCain Foods responded before press time.
“McCain Foods strongly rejects any allegation that the company violated antitrust laws, or any other laws, in connection with the sale of frozen potato products,” Charlie Angelakos, the company’s vice president of global external affairs and sustainability, said in a statement.
“McCain Foods intends to vigorously defend the recently filed lawsuits so that it can focus on what we do best: providing high-quality, affordable food to customers across the country.”
&Copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
