(MENAFN- AFP) Things turned sour on Thursday for 11 French dairy product companies when France's competition watchdog slapped them with 192.7 million euros ($204.2 million) in fines for fixing prices.
The fines imposed on the "highly organised cartel" -- among them Senagral, Novandis, and Lactalis -- is one of the highest since the inception of the competition authority, its vice-president Thierry Dahan told a news conference.
The cartel operated between 2006 and 2012 and was accused of agreeing to set wholesale prices for various fresh dairy products in a bid to divvy up the market among themselves.
The Lactalis Nestle group which received the largest portion of the fine -- 56.1 million euros -- said it will appeal the "extremely severe" decision.
The Yoplait group managed to escape being sanctioned under a clemency procedure, since it had been the first to report the cartel's activities.
France is a big consumer of fresh dairy products with supermarket shelves stocked to the brim with a range of yoghurts, fresh cheese known as fromage blanc, and milk-based deserts.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.