Officials from the US Justice Department are investigating pricing practices among chocolate makers in the US, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.
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The reported probe follows similar investigations by regulators in Canada into the Canadian operations of Hershey, Cadbury Schweppes, Mars and Nestlé.
While the Justice Department itself made no comment, the newspaper said two chocolate companies, Mars and Nestlé, had confirmed that inquiries had been made.
Mars spokesperson Alice Nathanson said that the company had been contacted by the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division “regarding their inquiry concerning pricing practices in the US chocolate confectionery industry”.
Nathanson said the company would cooperate with the Department of Justice but would not comment further.
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By GlobalDataMeanwhile, Nestlé spokesperson Laurie MacDonald said: “Nestlé USA is aware of a preliminary investigation into the marketing practices in the US chocolate industry. We’ve not received any document requests but we plan to cooperate fully with this investigation and it’s our policy to operate ethically and follow all applicable laws and regulations wherever we do business.”
However, Cadbury would neither confirm nor deny whether it had been contacted by the Justice Department, while Hershey declined to comment.
