The Department of Justice is seeking information regarding alleged price-fixing of chickens by processors.
Meat industry publication Meatingplace reports the Department of Justice has issued a grand jury subpoena to plaintiffs in a class action price-fixing lawsuit against the chicken industry.
The subpoena requests information produced in the discovery process by all parties in the case.
Tyson Foods, in a regulatory filing, said it was notified of the request on April 26 by the plaintiffs.
Decisions on class certification and summary judgment motions likely to be filed by defendants are not expected before the second half of 2020, under the scheduling order currently governing the case.
A food distributor in 2016 filed the class action lawsuit alleging Tyson and other poultry processors conspired to “fix, raise, maintain, and stabilize” prices for broiler chickens.
Subsequent lawsuits of similar nature were filed, prompting the court to consolidate the complaints into three classes, including direct purchasers, indirect purchasers and consumers, and commercial indirect purchasers.
