Rats in the Grain: The Dirty Tricks
and Trials of Archer Daniels Midland,
the Supermarket to the World by
James B. Lieber
Well Done With An Important "Afterword"
Archer Daniels Midland--popularly known as ADM, the Supermarket to the
World--spends millions on ads during Sunday morning TV talk shows and
on public radio to burnish its popular image. But behind the façade lies a
vicious business eager to fix prices with its competitors and employ
prostitutes in corporate espionage, according to James B. Liebers
muckraking account, Rats in the Grain. Lieber tells the story of why the FBI
raided ADMs Illinois headquarters in 1995, as well as the events leading
up to the raid and the trial that resulted. ADM was not an easy target--its
extremely well connected in Washington (an appendix listing politicians
who have received financial contributions from ADM reads like a whos who
of Beltway power brokers), and it was a leading recipient of federal
largesse. In the end, ADM paid a criminal antitrust fine of $100 million, and

two top executives were sent to prison for collaborating with competitors.
But the case was messy. The FBIs informant, Mark Whitacre--once
believed to be in line to succeed the company president--twice tried to
commit suicide following the FBI raid, and was eventually sentenced to
nine years for fraud, money laundering, and tax evasion. But Lieber tells
the story of ADMs crisis well, and with a strong anti-ADM slant. Hes no
master of prose style, but his writing is clear and to the point. His book
simply crackles with detail--at times, its difficult to keep up with all the
characters (theres another appendix identifying them for easy reference).
Throughout the text, readers will feel as if theyre in the middle of a 60
Minutes exposé of dirty business practices--a sense augmented by several
pages of photos taken from hidden surveillance cameras spying on
backroom deals. After reading Rats in the Grain, it will be impossible to
look at one of those feel-good ADM ads the same way again. --John J.
Miller
Personal Review: Rats in the Grain: The Dirty Tricks and Trials
of Archer Daniels Midland, the Supermarket to the World by
James B. Lieber
Attorney Lieber deserves high praise for his objective, informative
presentation of the antitrust criminal case vs. Archer Daniels Midland, the
agribusiness giant, that ADM, its powerful lawyers and Clinton's Justice
Department did not want published. To his credit, he continued to pursue
this case after most reporters backed off and swallowed the dizzying spin
and disinformation that ADM's CEO Dwayne Andreas and his aggressive
lawyers gave the media, crying crocodile tears as the "victim" of an
allegedly deranged ADM executive, Mark Whitacre, who became the FBI's
mole, and made hundreds of tapes incriminating ADM executives fixing
prices in world markets with their competitors. Lieber correctly smelled the
stench of a cover-up and adroitly guides readers to make their own
conclusions after compiling evidence, omissions from court records, and
other factors that allow readers to infer that the judicial process was
compromised by ADM's widespread political
influence before the trial even began. Although Dwayne Andreas,
the infamous political fixer and king of corporate welfare, got immunity in a
highly secretive plea bargain to Justice in 1996,
after ADM agreed to pay a record fine of $100 million, his son
Michael was convicted and imprisoned with Terry Wilson for a
mere 3 years, and Dwayne (thanks to outraged and courageous ADM
shareholders) finally resigned. Tragically, Whitacre was
convicted, fined and sentenced to a harsh term of 9 years

because of ADM's swift retaliation against him as whistleblower, for
exposing to the FBI the ... corporate culture of
ADM...(anything goes-but don't get caught-and here's your big
bonus (not reported on books)to keep silent, the unspoken words
being that an employee would be fired and crucified if they
blew the whistle.
Lieber's chilling comment (p. 322)should concern every citizen
or future whistleblower who believes in due process and our rule of law: "It
was expected that ADM's attorneys would savage the
snitch. What was highly bizarre in the world of criminal law was the way
the Justice Department joined in the frenzy to destroy Whitacre. This was
an aberration...the perpetrator was a
politically wired corporation whose law firm- the president's law firm- had
unbridled entree and influence at Justice. The
mole's lawyer had none."
Lieber makes a strong case that this American corporate history- "one of
the most important antitrust cases of the century"- should be closely
examined. Rightly so. Why was the court record sealed, why were key
witnesses (e.g., Wayne Brasser) not deposed, who could have validated
Whitacre's claims that the hidden bonuses were a quid pro quo for
engaging in illegal price-fixing? The author's appendices are very helpful.
ADM and Dwayne Andreas not only have lobbied for years to emasculate
our antitrust laws (the "Magna Carta" of free enterprise) but know that the
massive soft money donations to key politicians can grease not only the
wheels of justice, but also ensure that ADM continues to get huge
subsidies for ethanol and other favors from Agriculture Dept. (high fructose
corn syrup,peanuts) that have cost taxpayers billions of dollars.
Rats in the Grain is highly recommended, and was a difficult book to
write because of the case's complexity. James Lieber should be
considered for a Pulitzer Prize.
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