<p style="text-indent:0px; line-height:12px;"><span style="font-weight:bold;line-height:130%"> Coral Gables, FL</span><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">By Eric Anderson<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">3.18.13</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p>Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. has won a reduction in a European Union fine for alleged anti-competitive information exchanges from 14.7 million Euros to 8.82 million Euros ($11.4 million) while, as reported, Dole Food Co. lost an EU court challenge against its 45.6 million-euro fine for rigging banana prices.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">The EU General Court today ruled Fresh Del Monte’s fine merited a reduction from the original figure, due to the company’s cooperation with regulators and mitigating circumstances.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">The European Commission, the EU’s antitrust regulator, in October 2008 fined the two companies for colluding on prices between 2000 and 2002 in eight EU countries, including Austria, Germany and the Netherlands, according to Bloomberg. Banana exports rose to the highest in at least a decade in 2011, making it the most-traded fruit, according to the World Trade Organization.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Dole still plans to appeal the ruling, according to a release.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Fresh Del Monte got its penalty jointly with Internationale Fruchtimport Gesellschaft Weichert GmbH & Co. Chiquita Brands International Inc. escaped an 83.2 million euro-fine because it was first to notify EU regulators about the cartel.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Chiquita avoided being penalized by blowing the whistle in 2011 as well, on a second cartel in Italy, Greece and Portugal from July 2004 until April 2005.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Dole, made an initial fine payment of $10 million to the commission in January 2009 and “provided the required bank guarantee for the remaining balance,” the company said in a March 12 filing.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-14/fresh-del-monte-wins-banana-cartel-fine-cut-doles-loses.html" target="_new">Del Monte</a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
