"I ordered 20 boxes of dairy products from Namyang Dairy Products, but they sent me 60 boxes. Business is so slow, it's difficult just to sell the 20 boxes. How can I possibly sell three times that, 60? Forcing products onto distributors like this happens all the time. They're nothing but a thief, without the knife."

On May 5, as the verbal abuses that a Namyang Dairy Products' salesperson hurled at one distributor was released on the internet, the "vicious" actions of this company, which dumped products on distributors and abused its advantageous position, surfaced at the center of controversy.

The case of K, who recently closed up shop after running a Namyang distribution store for 3 years in Seoul, clearly displays the company's unfair practices of forcing sales onto its distributors.

Distributors stack milk, coffee and other products by Namyang Dairy and demonstrate holding picket signs in front of Namyang Dairy Products headquarters in Namdaemunno, Seoul on May 5.

According to K, forcing sales is a term used to describe the company's taking advantage of its dominant position in the contract and illegally pressing the distributors to sell more products. He claimed that the company illegally manipulated the order program to force products onto distributors.

K said, "After the company receives the last order through a computerized system, the salespeople in charge of each distributor changes the data according to the company guidelines and annual target, forcing products onto distributors. The orders made by the distributors disappear and only the data input by the company remain."

More than 10 distributors who suffered these damages including K have recently founded a council of Namyang Dairy Products victims to report such overbearing practices. They, along with Lawyers for a Democratic Society and the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy have filed a lawsuit at the Seoul Central District Court.

These groups claim that in the case of Namyang Dairy, many distributors were forced to hand gifts (bribes) to company staff, and some even had to pay for the wages of employees dispatched from headquarters.

They argue that the company treated distributors not as their primary customers or business partners, who first come in contact with their products, but as targets from which they were to pursue profits through whichever means necessary.

N, a former distributor in the Seoul Gangbuk region said, "Namyang Dairy Products only pays 20~30% of the salary of salespeople dispatched from large retailers such as Lotte Mart, and force the distributors to shoulder the remaining 70~80%. I've gained debts over 200 million won due to the unjust and malicious actions of Namyang."

One member of the victims' council said, "They take 100,000~300,000 million won from each distributor in the name of a bonus on holidays. The company demands kickbacks of 10~30% in the name of incentives and promotion expenses, and there are more than a few cases where they demand retirement bonuses for their executives."

The victims' council also said that Namyang often sent down products with impending expiration dates to the distributors through their regional headquarters. Generally, dairy distribution companies destroy and do not deliver products with only 30% left in their shelf life until the expiration date. However, Namyang forced these products onto their distributors.

When a short circuit caused a fire at his store, D, another distributor, urgently notified the company and asked the company to postpone the payment of purchased items. However, the company employee calmly hung up the phone after informing him of the amount of payment that was due that day.

The company just pressured him to make the payment without asking about any injuries to the people or the size of the damage. D said, "Even though my store had burned down, I was supposed to make the payment by any means necessary. It didn't matter if I sold an organ or robbed someone. Namyang is a vicious company that feeds off of the blood of the distributors."

The victims' council claim that the malicious acts of large companies such as Namyang do not go away because of penalties amounting to only a slap on the wrist. One person from the victims' council said, "If we report the unfair practices, the Fair Trade Commission recommends corrective measures and the company pays a fine of 15 million won. The repeat of light punishments allows companies like Namyang, which habitually carry out unjust practices, grow in size and once again pressure distributors and subcontractors."

He added, "This kind of behavior will only be eradicated when the fines for these illegal activities surpass the profits and related legislation is revised to allow for stronger penalties, such as the arrest of management in case of such illegal acts."

Namyang Dairy Products argues that these claims deviate from the fact. A person from the company said, "The claims made by the distributors concerning the issue of bonuses and forcing products with impending expiration dates onto the distributors are extremely distorted and exaggerated. The company has sued the representative of the victims' council for spreading false information."