Loblaw and George Weston Settle $500M Bread Price-Fixing Lawsuit

Loblaw Companies and its parent company, George Weston, have finalized a settlement agreement in connection with class-action lawsuits related to an alleged industry-wide price-fixing scheme in Canada’s bread market. According to Bloomberg, the companies reached a $500 million settlement, which was announced last year and formally executed on January 31. However, the agreement still requires approval from courts in Ontario and Quebec.

Per Bloomberg, Loblaw and George Weston will collectively contribute $404 million to the settlement, while the remaining $96 million will be covered through Loblaw’s 2017 gift card program. The lawsuits allege that several industry players conspired to manipulate the cost of packaged bread, ultimately impacting Canadian consumers.

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Lawyers involved in the case indicated that the settlement will also provide access to critical information that may aid in ongoing litigation against other defendants, including Canada Bread, Sobeys, Metro, Walmart Canada, and Giant Tiger. These companies remain entangled in the legal proceedings, with Canada Bread having already pleaded guilty to four counts of price-fixing in a Competition Bureau investigation. Despite this, Canada Bread denies involvement in a broader conspiracy.

Loblaw and George Weston stand as the only firms to have reached a settlement thus far. According to Bloomberg, they previously acknowledged their participation in the alleged scheme as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing probe.

Source: Bloomberg