Sanderson Farms gets subpoena from US justice department

Sanderson Farms disclosed it had received s subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) concerning court cases in which Sanderson Farms and other top poultry companies in the United States are accused of conspiring to raise the price of chicken.

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(edwardolive | BigStockPhoto)
(edwardolive | BigStockPhoto)

Sanderson Farms disclosed it had received s subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) concerning court cases in which Sanderson Farms and other top poultry companies in the United States are accused of conspiring to raise the price of chicken.

In a September 9 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission the company said it received the subpoena, and that Sanderson Farms intends to comply with the subpoena. The filing can be found on the Sanderson Farms investor relations website.

Another defendant in the lawsuits, Tyson Foods, received a similar subpoena in August.

Numerous civil lawsuits that allege collusion between top integrators and Agri Stats have been filed, following an initial suit filed by foodservice distributor Maplevale Farms in 2016. The suits have all been remarkably similar, and have been dismissed by those in the industry as frivolous.

The DOJ in June filed a motion to intervene in such lawsuits and is conducting its own investigation.

At the time the DOJ filed the motion, Sanderson Farms stated that the claims against Sanderson Farms “are wholly without merit, and we are committed to defending the case vigorously.”

In addition to Sanderson Farms and Tyson Foods, other top poultry companies named in the lawsuits include Pilgrim’s Pride, Perdue Farms, Koch Foods, Wayne Farms, Foster Farms, Mar-Jac Poultry, Fieldale Farms, Claxton Poultry Farms, House of Raeford Farms, Mountaire Farms, Peco Foods, Simmons Foods, George’s, OK Foods and Harrison Poultry.

Meanwhile, many of the same companies have become the defendants in another lawsuit, which was filed August 30. In this suit, the poultry companies are accused of collusion by holding secret meetings to discuss employee wages in an effort to fix wages.

Sanderson Farms, according to the WATTAgNet Top Poultry Companies Database, is the third largest poultry company in the United States. It processed 86.6 million pounds of ready to cook chicken on a weekly basis in 2018.

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