In In Re: Pineapple Antitrust Litigation, Southern District of New York Judge Richard M. Berman handed Del Monte Fresh Produce Co. an emphatic victory against retailers and consumers that had accused the company of exploiting monopoly power in the market for extra sweet pineapple by using sham patent litigation since 1996 to gain a stranglehold and raise prices. The court held that 1) Fresh Del Monte Gold, or MD-2 pineapples did not constitute appropriately a separate sub-market, and plaintiffs did not argue that defendants had monopoly power in the broader pineapple market; and 2) plaintiffs failed to substantiate claims that Del Monte threatened to sue competitors like Dole and Maui for infringing a patent for MD-2 pineapple while knowing the fruit was not patented or that the threats prevented other companies from entering the market.