Broiler Chicken Antitrust Litigation
United States District Court For The Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division
Case No. 1:16-cv-08637
BACKGROUND:
The plaintiffs allege that the Defendants conspired and combined to fix, raise, maintain and stabilize the price of Broilers. The principal (but not exclusive) method by which Defendants allegedly implemented and executed their conspiracy was by coordinating their output and limiting production with the intent and expected result of increasing prices of Broilers in the United States. Broilers are chickens raised for meat consumption to be slaughtered before the age of 13 weeks, and which may be sold in a variety of forms, including fresh or frozen, raw or cooked, whole or in parts, or as a meat ingredient in a value-added product, but excluding chicken that is grown, processed, and sold according to halal, kosher, free-range or organic standards.
DEFENDANTS:
Amick Farms, LLC; Koch Foods Defendants (Koch Foods, Inc., JCG Foods of Alabama, LLC, JCG Foods of Georgia, LLC, Koch Meat Co., Inc.); Tyson Defendants (Tyson Foods, Inc., Tyson Chicken, Inc., Tyson Breeders, Inc., Tyson Poultry, Inc.); Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation; Perdue Defendants (Perdue Farms, Inc., Perdue Foods LLC); Sanderson Farm, Inc.; Wayne Farms, LLC; Mountaire Farms Defendants (Mountaire Farms, Inc., Mountaire Farms, LLC, Mountaire Farms of Delaware, Inc.); Peco Foods, Inc.; Foster Farms, LLC; House of Raeford Farms; Simmons Foods, Inc.; Fieldale Farms Corporation; George’s Inc.; O.K. Foods Defendants (O.K. Foods, Inc., O.K. Farms, Inc., O.K. Industries, Inc.) Co-Conspirators: Agri Stats, Inc., Claxton Poultry Farms, Inc., Harrison Poultry, Inc., Mar-Jac Poultry, Inc.
DIRECT PURCHASER CLASS: (Proposed):
All persons who purchased Broilers directly from any of the Defendants or any co-conspirator identified in this action, or their respective subsidiaries or affiliates for use of delivery in the United States from at least as early as January 1, 2008 until December 20, 2019.
COMMERCIAL & INSTITUTIONAL INDIRECT PURCHASER CLASS: (Proposed):
All entities who indirectly purchased Broilers from Defendants or co-conspirators from as early as January 1, 2008 until July 31, 2019 for their own use in commercial food preparation, including institutional purchasers such as hospitals, nursing homes, and schools. The indirect states are as follows: Arizona, California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin.
SETTLEMENTS:
$180,876,600.00 (Direct Purchaser Class) $103,890.000.00 (Commercial and Institutional Indirect Purchaser Plaintiffs CIIPPs)
CLAIM FILING DEADLINE
May 17, 2021 (Direct Purchasers Round 1, more to follow) March 2, 2022 (Commercial and Institutional Indirect Purchasers)
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