StarKist has resolved complaints filed against it by Kroger and 32 other retailers related to its involvement in a scheme to fix the price of canned tuna in the U.S. market.
The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.-based tuna-focused company pleaded guilty in October 2018 to fixing the prices of canned tuna it sold in the U.S. between 2011 and 2013, a violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. Bumble Bee Foods and Chicken of the Sea were also involved in the scheme, and both firms have also paid out millions of dollars to resolve civil suits related to the scandal.
StarKist did not release terms of the agreement with the retailers. In January, StarKist paid Walmart USD 20.5 million (EUR 17.9 million) to resolve a suit related to the price-fixing brought by Bentonville, Arkansas-based company, which is the largest retailer of canned tuna in the country. StarKist also previously reached financial agreements with Target and Sam’s Club that resulted in the termination of their litigation against StarKist related to the price-fixing scandal.
"StarKist is pleased to resolve this matter with our valued customers. This settlement, together with prior ones, resolves a substantial number of the company disputes with the direct action plaintiffs," StarKist General Counsel and Senior Vice President Scott Meece said in a press release.
In January, StarKist President and CEO Andrew Choe repeated the company’s calls for corporations suing his firm to enter into settlement negotiations. He repeated that message in the announcement of the latest settlement.
"StarKist is committed to being a socially responsible company and we are pleased to resolve this lawsuit with our customers under fair and reasonable terms," Choe said. "We will continue to conduct our business with the utmost transparency and integrity, and we hope to resolve the remaining lawsuits with our other customers under similarly fair and mutually beneficial terms.”
