Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation has agreed to pay $100 million to settle claims that it conspired with other poultry integrators to underpay contract growers.
According to a Reuters report, a preliminary settlement was filed on August 16 in the U.S. District Court in Muskogee, Oklahoma. The proposed settlement still needs the approval of U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby.
In the seven-year-old antitrust lawsuit, Pilgrim’s Pride is accused of sharing confidential information concerning grower compensation with other poultry companies, as well as agreeing with other companies to not attempt to recruit one another’s growers.
Despite agreeing to the settlement, Pilgrim’s Pride denies any wrongdoing.
Other companies accused of collusion in this lawsuit have previously reached settlements. According to the Reuters report, included in those companies are Tyson Foods, Sanderson Farms, Koch Foods and Perdue Foods. However, none of their settlement amounts were near as high as the amount agreed to by Pilgrim’s Pride.
The previous highest agreed-to amount involved Tyson Foods, which settled for $21 million. The smallest amount involved Perdue, which settled for $14.75 million.
Headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, Pilgrim’s Pride is the second largest poultry producer in the United States. During 2023, the company processed 161.7 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis. According to information from the WATTPoultry.com Top Poultry Companies Database, Pilgrim’s Pride operates 26 slaughter plants, 33 hatcheries and 27 feed mills.
