Tyson near legal settlement with contract growers

Tyson Foods has reportedly reached an agreement in principle that would resolve claims that the company participated in a conspiracy to drive down pay for contract poultry producers.

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Yurii Bukhanovskyi, Bigstock
Yurii Bukhanovskyi, Bigstock

Tyson Foods has reportedly reached an agreement in principle that would resolve claims that the company participated in a conspiracy to drive down pay for contract poultry producers.

According to a Blomberg Law article, the plaintiffs are “working to finalize and document all terms of the class action settlement,” which seeks monetary compensation and “significant and invaluable cooperation” against other integrators involved in the case.

The lawsuit also targets Koch Foods, Perdue Farms, Pilgrim’s Pride and Sanderson Farms.

According to a court document, plaintiffs in the case are Haff Poultry Inc., Nancy Butler, Johnny Upchurch, Jonathan Walters, Myles Weaver, Melissa Weaver, Marc McEntire, Karen McEintire and Mitchell Mason.

That same document states that the plaintiffs will move the court for preliminary approval of the agreement and sot set a hearing on the preliminary approval. The court document was filed on June 14.

The initial lawsuit was filed in 2020, in which plaintiffs say the alleged scheme put small growers in a position where they either had to take non-competitive prices for their products or face financial ruin because of the high costs in setting up operations that meet the specifications required by the integrators.

The news that Tyson Foods is settling this lawsuit alleging collusion with other poultry companies follows other settlements recently reached by the company.

In late May, it was reported that Tyson Foods reached a $4.62 million settlement with purchasers of turkey products who alleged Tyson had conspired with other top turkey companies, including Perdue Farms, Butterball, Cargill, Cooper Farms, Foster Farms, Hormel Foods, House of Raeford Farms and Farbest Foods.

In January, Tyson Foods agreed to pay $221.5 million to settle all class claims related to allegations that it conspired with other broiler companies to raise the price of chicken. The company, however, did not admit any guilt but instead opted to settle because it was “in the best interests of the company and its shareholders.”

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