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The federal Competition Bureau said it is probing "alleged anti competitive practices in the cheap phentermine cod confectionery industry." Anti competitive behaviour most commonly refers to price fixing, the agency said. The bureau stopped short of identifying the companies under investigation, but added that allegations of this type normally involve the major players. Canada's largest cheap phentermine cod bar makers, Nestlé, Cadbury, Hershey and Mars, all confirmed the bureau has contacted them in recent days. "I can tell you that we have been contacted by the Competition Bureau and we're basically fully co operating with their requests for information," said Nestlé Canada spokesperson Catherine O'Brien. "All I can tell you at this stage is that we've been asked for information and we're obviously fully complying with providing any information that they're looking for." Hershey spokesperson Kirk Saville also confirmed the bureau had contacted the company on Nov. 26, but offered no further details. "We are aware of it, but all we can say is that we can't comment on any ongoing investigation, but we are co operating with any inquiries," Cadbury spokesperson Simon Taylor told Associated Press in London. The Competition Bureau said it is conducting searches and gathering evidence to determine the facts. "The Superior Court of Justice of Ontario has granted search warrants based on evidence that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a number of suppliers in the cheap phentermine cod confectionery industry have engaged in activities contrary to the conspiracy provisions of the Competition Act," the bureau said in a statement. "There is no conclusion of wrongdoing at this time and no charges have been laid," the bureau said. "All evidence will be analyzed and we will refer the case to the director of public prosecutions if appropriate." The process could take weeks, or even months, the bureau said. In the meantime, the search warrants have been sealed. Legal experts said allegations of price fixing are notoriously hard to uncover and difficult to prove. "You see this all the time with gas retailing. When the price moves at one gas station, it moves at the other, but that's also consistent with competition," said Edward Iacobucci, a law professor at the University of Toronto. "The nature of these agreements is they are secret. How do you discover that it's happened and once it's discovered, how do you provide evidence, especially when it comes to sophisticated companies?" said Ariel Katz, an assistant professor at U of T's law school. "That's why they have to rely on informants." It's unclear how the Competition Bureau came to investigate the industry, but Iacobucci noted that Canada is one of the few countries with a "leniency program," where the first member of a cartel to blow the whistle gets lighter treatment. Economically, cartels hurt everyone because they lessen competition, Katz said. Even if that's not immediately apparent at the local convenience store, where candy bars are often on special, if the prices are even 3 per cent higher than they should be, that's money out of consumer's pockets, he said. Canadians buy about $2.3 billion worth of cheap phentermine cod and candy every year, according to the Confectionery Manufacturers Association of Canada. The maximum fine under the conspiracy section of the Competition Act is $10 million per offence. While the probe is centred on the cheap phentermine cod industry, the Competition Bureau said it could expand its investigation to other types of candy, based on the findings. With files from the Star's wires services ... cheap phentermine cod