Italian trading company Mediterranea Sementi s.r.l. appeals guilty verdict.
Earlier this year, Breeders Trust won a penal lawsuit against Mediterranea Sementi s.r.l.’s CEO. The Italian court ruled that fraud had been committed, as the Italian grass seed company marketed grass seed that was not true to variety. Mediterranea Sementi was commanded to pay 1,000 euros in fines to cover legal costs and damages connected to the market distortion. The court also demanded the publication of the ruling in a regional newspaper, according to a release.
The incident began in 2015 when Breeders Trust purchased Ceronte variety grass seed from a shop in central Italy. An independent investigation proved that the grass seed was not the Ceronte seed it claimed to be on the certificate.
After Breeders Trust shared its findings with ICQRF, the Italian fraud investigation agency, and CREA, the Italian certification authority, Italian authorities launched their own investigation. Their investigation came to the same conclusion — the batch in question was not true to variety. Then began the criminal proceedings before the Teramo court in 2016.
Following intensive legal and technical discussions, the judge ruled against Mediterranea Sementi s.r.l., stating the CEO had marketed the grass seeds illegally.
This verdict was recently appealed by Mediterranea Sementi.
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