The Japan Fair Trade Commission has announced that it plans to impose administrative sanctions on fishermen's cooperatives and fisheries federations for unfairly restricting the transactions of seaweed producers in the Ariake Sea. A lawsuit has been filed in the Tokyo District Court, and oral arguments began on the 1st.
Regarding the Saga Prefecture Ariake Sea Fisheries Cooperative Association and the Kumamoto Prefecture Fisheries Cooperative Federation, which are members of producers from the Ariake Sea, Japan's largest producer of seaweed, the Fair Trade Commission has determined that all seaweed must be sold to the cooperatives. The company has decided to issue a "cease and desist order," which is the heaviest administrative punishment stipulated in the Antimonopoly Act, and has notified the organization that the company is unfairly restraining transactions by making the company write a pledge that it will ship to other countries. Masu.
The two organizations have filed a lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court seeking an injunction, and the first oral argument was held on the 1st.
After the court adjourned, the two organizations held a press conference.
At the press conference, the pledge does not obligate organizations to ship glue, nor does it impose any penalties.
He reiterated that there was no unfair transaction restraint.
Satoshi Nishikubo, president of the Saga Prefecture Ariake Sea Fisheries Cooperative Association, said, ``We have never given any punishment and we treat our members equally.There is no violation of the Antimonopoly Act.''
In response to an interview with NHK, the Fair Trade Commission said, ``We are currently investigating the incident, and we would like to refrain from commenting in detail on the claims made by the fisheries cooperative.''
Kumamoto Prefecture Fisheries Federation “There is no restriction on producers”
Takami Fujimori, chairman of the Kumamoto Prefecture Fisheries Cooperative Federation, said, ``Some production cooperatives in the prefecture sell to people other than the fishing federations, but we don't say anything, we don't impose penalties, and we don't have any authority. "We don't have any. There is no restraint on producers at all."