Equine feed producer Glanbia Foods Ireland Ltd claims it has lost some €9 million as a result of having been supplied with an ingredient containing a banned substance that it used to make horse feed.
Kilkenny-based Glanbia, trading as Glanbia Agribusiness, is suing ED&F Man Liquid Products Ireland Ltd over the supply of molasses products, which it claims contained the performance-enhancing substance zilipaterol. The molasses was used in the Glanbia product Gain Equine Feed, which was sold to customers in the EU and further afield.
Zilpaterol is used generally to increase the daily live weight gain of livestock and the efficiency of feeding them. It is banned by the EU.
In October 2020, the French horse racing authority France Galop announced that five horses, and later another 13, had tested positive for zilpatreol.
As a result, the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine issued a notice requiring that all feeds purported to contain the substance be detained and any further supplies to only take place following confirmation of the absence of zilpaterol.
Contaminated batches
Glanbia said as a result of its investigations the source of the contamination was identified as molasses. A recall of the affected batches was initiated.
Glanbia says ED&F Man Liquid Products Ireland, with registered officers in Spencer Dock, Dublin, sold it €516,000 worth of “Molasses Cane 72 Bulk” under an April 2020 contract for use in Glanbia’s products. It also sold Glanbia another €78,000 worth of an ingredient called “Molglo Plus Bulk”.
Glanbia claims the defendant was in breach of contract, misrepresentation and negligence, among other things, in supplying molasses products which were defective and contaminated with zilpaterol.
It also claims, among other things, it failed to carry out adequate testing or inspection of the molasses products it supplied.
It says it is facing claims by customers amounting to more than €4 million, along with various other costs and loss of profit, totalling just over €9 million.
It seeks damages as well as a declaration that it is entitled to a contractual indemnity from the defendant for its losses and liabilities, including for any third party claims. It also seeks a declaration that it is entitled to recover a contribution in the amount of a complete indemnity or, alternatively, such an amount as the court may decide.
The case was admitted to the fast track Commercial Court on Monday by Mr Justice Denis McDonald who gave directions on how it should proceed and said it could come back in June.
The court heard the defendant did not object to admission to the fast-track court. However, this was on the basis it was reserving its position on issues over contractual interpretation as to whether the proper jurisdiction for the case is England and whether the contract requires that the matter go to mediation.
