ADM wins reduction of antitrust fine

Archer Daniels Midland Co. succeeded in a final attempt at the European Union's highest court to cut an EU fine levied for fixing prices of a food additive to 29.4 million euros ($41.1 million) from 39.7 million euros.

The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg said yesterday that EU regulators were "wrong" to classify Archer Daniels as a leader of the citric acid-market cartel at the center of the antitrust case.

"We are gratified by the court's acceptance of some of our arguments, while at the same time being disappointed that they did not accept the balance of them," David Weintraub, Archer Daniels' director of external communications, said in an e- mailed statement.

Archer Daniels, the world's largest grain processor, was among five companies fined a combined 135.2 million euros by the European Commission in 2001 for fixing prices of citric acid, which is typically used in food and cleaning products. The cartel controlled about 60 percent of the global market for citric acid between 1991 and 1995, when the market for it was about 895 million euros.

The Decatur-based company appealed after a lower EU court rejected its challenge in 2006.

Jonathan Todd, a spokesman for EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, said the regulator "will study the ruling carefully."

The case is C-511/06 P Archer Daniels Midland v Commission.