Ohio attorney general files suit against salt companies

COLUMBUS — Attorney General Mike DeWine filed suit today against two companies accused of manipulating rock salt prices as part of a scheme to ensure one or the other could secure contracts throughout the state.

DeWine is alleging Morton Salt and Cargill conducted "a salt scam that has ripped off Ohio taxpayers for at least $50 million."

"For over a decade, these companies deliberately conspired to conscientiously and systematically manipulate the rock salt market in the state of Ohio, having an impact on all 88 counties and every Ohio taxpayer," DeWine told reporters at a press conference at an Ohio Department of Transportation salt storage building near downtown Columbus.

The civil suit, filed in Tuscarawas County Common Pleas Court, alleges that Morton and Cargill divvied up the state's rock salt market, agreeing not to compete against each other and driving up prices in the process.

The companies, the only two that mine rock salt within the state, decided in secret which one would win contracts to provide salt to different Ohio counties, with Morton focusing on northwest and northeast Ohio and Cargill taking much of the remainder, DeWine said.

The setup gave the illusion of competition when, in fact, the companies had determined in advance which would submit the successful bids, he said.