The milk giant that turned sour

摘要

Log on to Parmalat's website, and you will be treated to various feel-good messages such as 'Life is joy' and 'Life is emotion'. Joy has been in scant supply at the Italian milk giant over the last couple of months, but there has been no shortage of emotion since its multi-billion euro accounting scandal broke shortly before Christmas. Former finance chief Fausto Tonno's outburst to journalists last month, in which he wished them and their families 'a slow and painful death', is probably not, however, the sort of emotion Parmalat marketing gurus had in mind when they designed the website. Nor are the negative emotions swirling in the minds of Tonno and those other former Parmalat executives - and auditors - who are now contemplating the world from inside jail cells. At the time of going to press, 11 people involved with the financial management of the company had been arrested, including founder Calisto Tanzi and two auditors from Grant Thornton's now-ditched Italian firm.