MELBOURNE, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Australia has imposed anti-dumping duties on two brands of Italian tinned tomatoes, after finding they were unfairly subsidised by European Union payments to growers, the government's anti-dumping commission said on Thursday.
"Prepared or preserved tomatoes have been exported to Australia from Italy by Feger and La Doria at dumped prices and the dumping has caused material injury to the Australian industry producing like goods," the regulator said in a statement.
Imports from Feger di Gerardo Ferraioli SpA will attract an 8.4 percent dumping margin, while La Doria SPA LDO.MI imports will attract a 4.5 percent margin, according to a report by the regulator.
"This ruling will ensure that Australia's only canned tomato producer, SPC Ardmona, can now compete equally in Australian stores and supermarkets," Christopher Pyne, the country's industry, innovation and science minister, said in a statement.
"It is the second dumping decision regarding Italian tomatoes and means that all canned tomatoes from Italy are now subject to anti-dumping measures."
The matter was brought to Australian regulators by food processor SPC Ardmona(SPCA), a unit of Coca Cola Amatil CCL.AX , the country's largest maker of canned Australian produce. Coca-Cola Amatil is majority owned by Coca-Cola KO.N .
"Since 2010 the illegal dumping of products has resulted in material damage to SPC, including a loss of 40 percent of its volume and reduced profitability, as it struggled to compete on price with these dumped Italian tomato products," SPC said in a statement.
Shares in Coca-Cola Amatil closed at up 3 percent at A$8.24, trimming the year's losses to 11 percent.