Italy's Parmalat sues ex-auditors

Parmalat products were found on most Italian breakfast tables

Italian food giant Parmalat is suing its former auditors over their dealings with the insolvent group before its near collapse last December.

Deloitte & Touche and Grant Thornton International, as well as current and past affiliates, are named in the lawsuit filed in Illinois.

It is the fourth case Parmalat has issued in a bid to share the blame over a 4bn euros (£2.66bn) accounting hole.

Parmalat's former management is at the centre of Italy's biggest fraud probe.

Restructuring plan

Parmalat was declared insolvent after it emerged almost cash the firm supposedly held in an account did not exist.

Subsequent investigations revealed a huge hole in the firm's balance sheet, covered up by as many as 15 years of false accounting.

The company is now run by a government-appointed administration, which is implementing a restructuring plan.

Both auditing firms said they would fight the lawsuits vigorously.

"Deloitte Italy believes the lawsuit is entirely unjustified," the company said in a statement.

"It was the actions of Deloitte Italy which led to the fraud being uncovered."

Grant Thornton International said that it did not accept Parmalat's move was a "legitimate action".

Parmalat has already issued proceedings against UBS, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank.

Parmalat administrator Enrico Bondi believes that banks either helped Parmalat hide the true state of its finances or got money at the expense of other creditors.