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South Korea brings starch sugar cartel charges against three companies

( April 23, 2026, 09:07 GMT | Official Statement) -- MLex Summary: Daesang, Sajo CPK and CJ CheilJedang, along with 21 current and former executives and the head of the starch sugar industry association, were indicted in South Korea on Thursday over an alleged long-running cartel involving starch sugars and related byproducts. Samyang Corporation, which had also been suspected of taking part, was not included in the latest indictments. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said the scheme ran from July 2017 to October 2025, covered about 10.2 trillion won ($6.9 billion) in sales and included collusion on general pricing, bids for major buyers and byproduct prices. Prosecutors said the cartel drove starch prices up by as much as 73.4 percent and sugar prices up by as much as 63.8 percent from pre-cartel levels, with the burden passed on to consumers. One senior executive was arrested and indicted on April 16, while the remaining defendants were indicted without detention on Thursday.Statement is attached (in Korean)....

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