State Receives $791,000 from Vitamin Lawsuit

(Pierre) – South Dakota is one step closer to seeing over $791,000 from a price fixing lawsuit with several vitamin component makers.

Attorney General Mark Barnett announced today that the court gave final approval of a settlement in a lawsuit with Hoffman-La Roche, Inc, BASF Corporation, Aventis Animal Nutrition, S.A., Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd., Eisai Co., Ltd., and Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. The state alleged that these companies had unlawfully entered into price fixing and allocation agreement involving vitamins and vitamin products.

“They got what was coming to them,” said Barnett. “Fortunately, the companies got caught and now South Dakota can benefit from their misdeeds.”

The state will use the money to provide over 100,000 bottles of vitamins to children and senior citizens. The vitamins will be distributed to senior citizen centers, food banks, the United Sioux Tribes, and domestic violence shelters.

“This will benefit the health of the elderly and the youth on the reservations,” said Clarence Skye, Executive Director of United Sioux Tribes. “I appreciate the attorney general recognizing our needs and including us in this distribution.” 

This distribution will also provide the Sioux Falls Food Service Center and the Rapid City
Regional Food Bank with a combined total of nearly $230 thousand dollars.  Both organizations will use the settlement money to purchase and distribute food to charitable organizations in all of South Dakota’s 66 counties.

Domestic violence shelters will also receive almost $73,000 for health and nutritional purposes.  A South Dakota State University soybean research project will receive $45,000, and the United Sioux Tribes will be given $25,000 to provide nutritional camps for children.

If no appeals are filed, the distribution will take place later this summer.

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