U.S. food distributors allege Tyson Foods, rivals fixed chicken prices

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

#BUSINESS NEWS JANUARY 31, 2018 / 1:15 PM / UPDATED 2 HOURS AGO

U.S. food distributors allege Tyson Foods, rivals fixed chicken prices

Tom Polansek
2 MIN READ

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Top U.S. food distributors Sysco Corp and U.S. Foods Inc have sued the country’s biggest chicken processors for allegedly conspiring to inflate prices.

The distributors sued companies including Tyson Foods Inc, Pilgrim’s Pride Corp, Sanderson Farms and Perdue Farms in separate complaints filed in federal court on Tuesday.

The U.S. chicken sector, which is dominated by these large meat companies, has come under increased scrutiny in recent years as customers and farmers have alleged antitrust violations relating to pricing, production and compensation.

Tyson, the biggest U.S. chicken company, and Pilgrim’s Pride denied the latest accusations. Sanderson Farms said it will defend itself against the claims, while privately held Perdue declined to comment.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-poultry-lawsuit/u-s-food-distributors-allege-tyson-foods-rivals-fixed-chicken-prices-idUSKBN1FK2NT

[bettyellen]

1. Wasnt Perdue the designated survivor last night at SOTU?

[procon]

2. Well, duh... all those industry trade groups aren't just bribing congress, you know!

Oh noes, they're also keeping the profits high by establishing baseline costs for their industry. Its in everything, and that should be obvious to anyone who shops. What... does everyone think its just a coincidence that milk prices only vary a penny or two from store to store? The consumer will never get a break under an American style capitalism that touts the marvels of the so called corrupt "free market" as a cover for industry wide price fixing.