Tyson Foods Inc. (TSN.N) has agreed to pay $85 million to settle a consumer lawsuit accusing the company of conspiring with rivals to inflate pork prices by limiting supply in the $20 billion U.S. pork market.
The preliminary class action settlement, disclosed Wednesday, is the largest in more than seven years of antitrust litigation against pork producers, surpassing Smithfield Foods’ $75 million settlement in 2022. The agreement would raise consumers’ total recovery in the litigation to $208 million, including settlements with Brazil’s JBS, Hormel Foods (HRL.N), and other defendants, Reuters reported.
Tyson, headquartered in Springdale, Arkansas, is the last publicly traded company named in the case to settle. The settlement requires approval from U.S. District Judge John Tunheim in Minneapolis.
Triumph Foods and data provider Agri Stats remain defendants in the litigation, which also involves dozens of supermarket chains, including Kroger (KR.N), restaurant chains such as McDonald’s (MCD.N), and various food producers and distributors.
The plaintiffs alleged that the conspiracy, which spanned from 2009 to 2018, aimed to boost the defendants’ profits by artificially raising pork prices.
Similar antitrust litigation concerning alleged price-fixing in beef, chicken, and turkey markets is currently pending in federal courts in Minnesota and Chicago.
The case is In re Pork Antitrust Litigation, U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota, No. 18-01776.
