The nightmare is far from over for billionaire Visy chief Richard Pratt. The New Zealand Commerce Commission has launched a prosecution of Pratt for Visy’s cartel with Amcor.
Amcor has been granted immunity from prosecutions by informing the NZCC of the cartel in 2004, but Pratt and former senior executives Harry Debney and Rod Carroll are named as defendants along with Visy’s NZ board.
Pratt is not facing jail in NZ but he could be up for more big fines. Penalties in NZ can represent 10% of group turnover for each offence. Visy’s annual turnover is reportedly $3 billion a year.
Six companies are named as victims in NZ, including Goodman Fielder and Inghams.
Of the NZ box market, 60% is shared by Visy and Amcor. The other 40% is held by Carter Holt Harvey, which is co-operating with NZCC. The existence of an extra player will make proving damages suffered by customers more difficult according to plaintiff lawyers.
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