April 18, 2007

US wheat farmers file class action suit against Australia's AWB
 

Australia's besieged wheat seller AWB Ltd, was lodged with two separate class actions lawsuits Monday (April 16) by both American and Australian wheat farmers as well as its AWB shareholders.

The lawsuits follow a finding by Australia's Cole Inquiry last year that charged AWB paid massive bribes to Saddam Hussein's regime to secure wheat contracts under the UN's Oil-for-Food program. On the other hand, the American lawsuit filed in federal district court in New York City has alleged the AWB with corruption that shut US wheat exports out of the Iraqi market during the Oil-for-Food program.

A statement from lawyers representing US wheat farmers explained the lawsuit "invokes the federal antitrust and civil RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) laws to force AWB and its US subsidiary to compensate American farmers for the damages they suffered. Damages to American farmers could be well over US$100 million."

Leonard Schock, Chairman, US Wheat Associates, said that while US Wheat Associates has been monitoring the situation for more than a year, no organization representing US wheat producers is a party to this class action suit nor did the association initiated the action.

US Wheat was the first to complain publicly about AWB's corrupt practices during the Oil-for-Food program.