A farmers' protest at Drogheda Port last year led to a full day's court proceedings yesterday.
Judgment has been reserved in the Competition Authority's first prosecution under the Competition Act 2002.
The case is being taken against leading members of the Irish Farmers' Association, over a protest at Drogheda Port 15 months ago against the importation of wheat from outside the European Union.
A special court sitting in Drogheda yesterday heard Dutch registered vessel the M.V. Arklow Sky was unable to unload its cargo of wheat, at Drogheda Port, Tom Roe's Point, because of the amount of protesters at the port on August 31st last.
It also heard that two days later, work had begun on unloading the shipment - within an hour of five of the defendants meeting a director of the company that owned the grain.
The IFA's deputy president, Mr Ruaidhrí Deasy, the chair of its grain committee, Mr Paddy Harrington, and the grain committee's executive secretary Mr Fintan Conway are accused of reaching an agreement with others, at Drogheda Port, Tom Roe's Point - with the object of distorting competition in the wheat trade within the State.
Their co-accused are the chair of the Louth IFA, Mr Raymond O'Malley, Ardee man Mr Colm McDonnell and Mr George O'Brien from Tullyallen.
With the exception of Mr Paddy Harrington, they are all charged with the same offence at the Boyne Valley Hotel, Drogheda.
However, Judge Flann Brennan dismissed two other sets of charges which alleged the accused had reached an agreement that had the effect of distorting competition at both locations on the same dates.
He found that there was no proof that the protest had an impact on the price of wheat and the evidence of the Competition Authority's chairman, Dr John Fingleton, who claimed that the defendant's protest would impact on the wheat trade amounted to a lesson in economic theories.
The court was further told the defendants only intended to protest against cheap wheat imports from outside the EU, in a bid to highlight that the ending of tariffs on grain from Baltic states, had badly hit markets within the EU.
Mr Richard Pringle of grain trader John Baker Limited said he had told the farmers at the Boyne Valley meeting that he would put the wheat into storage, but he claimed that would have happened with 95 per cent of the cargo anyway, because the shipment was three weeks late and the Irish harvest was already underway. He added that he viewed the meeting as a public relations exercise.
After hearing evidence throughout the day Judge Brennan reserved his judgment and adjourned the case until December 16th as he said it was the first prosecution under the Competition Act 2002 and he did not want to rush his decision.