Pilgrim’s Pride pleads guilty to price-fixing in chicken
The second-largest U.S. poultry processor, Pilgrim's Pride, pleaded guilty in federal court in Denver to conspiring to fix prices of broiler meat and was sentenced to pay a criminal fine of $108 million, said the Justice Department on Tuesday. Pilgrim's was the first company to settle charges in an alleged conspiracy that involved 10 officials from five processors.
Big poultry processor to pay $75 million to resolve antitrust lawsuit
Three months after a plea agreement with the government that included a $110.5 million fine, Pilgrim’s Pride, the second-largest U.S. poultry processor, said on Monday it would pay $75 million to settle a class-action lawsuit by its customers. Other price-fixing claims are pending in the …
Meat prices spike, cattle prices fall, and ranchers and lawmakers see market manipulation
Wholesale beef prices have jumped to record levels, as shoppers stockpile meat in response to the global coronavirus pandemic. But this run on beef isn’t helping cattle ranchers. On the contrary, cattle prices have plummeted since January, putting many ranchers on the brink of collapse. “It’s never been worse. The futures market is crashing … and box beef prices are skyrocketing. It’s nuts,” says rancher Mike Callicrate of St. Francis, Kansas. (No Paywall)
Judge allows DOJ to intervene in poultry price-fixing case
U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin in Chicago granted the Department of Justice’s request to stay discovery in a high-profile case that alleges collusion in the poultry industry. Durkin halted discovery in the case for three months, half the time DOJ had requested to protect its own grand jury investigation of the poultry sector.