Pilgrim’s Pride to pay $100M in broiler chicken farmers compensation class action

Update: 

• Pilgrim’s Pride agreed to pay $100 million to end claims it conspired with more than a dozen other chicken producers to unfairly limit the pay of chicken farmers. 
• A class consisting of more than 24,000 chicken broiler farmers claimed Pilgrim’s Pride used so-called no-poach agreements to eliminate the competition for their services. 
• They also alleged Pilgrim’s Pride shared information about pay, using data obtained from the agricultural data firm Agri Stats, with other chicken producers. 
• The settlement benefits a class of broiler chicken farmers who were paid for growing chickens between Jan. 27, 2013, and Dec. 31. 2019. 
• A federal judge in Oklahoma certified the class of chicken farmers in May. 
• The agreement postdates settlements agreed to by other chicken producers, such as Tyson, Perdue, Koch and Sanderson. 

Pilgrim’s Pride class action overview: 

• Who: A class of more than 24,354 chicken growers was certified by U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby in a class action lawsuit against Pilgrim’s Pride.
• Why: The lawsuit claims that a Pilgrim’s Pride no-poach agreement with other integrators unfairly limits the pay of chicken growers by eliminating competition for their services.
• Where: The Pilgrim’s Pride class action is in federal court in Oklahoma.

(May 29, 2024)

More than 24,000 chicken broiler farmers across the United States had their class certified in a lawsuit against integrator Pilgrim’s Pride.

The farmers’ class action lawsuit claims that a Pilgrim’s Pride no-poach agreement with other integrators unfairly limits the pay of chicken growers by eliminating competition for their services in addition to information sharing between integrators. 

U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby certified a class including broiler growers who provided chickens to Pilgrim’s Pride or any of its 20 alleged co-conspirators with an overarching agreement.

“Without the risk of a competitor poaching an Integrator’s Growers by offering higher compensation, the effect of the NPA, according to Plaintiffs, was to artificially suppress Grower pay through reduced competition,” the PIlgrim’s Pride class action says.

Chicken growers have common, consistent claims within class, judge ruled

Shelby determined that the Pilgrim’s Pride no-poach agreements led to common issues that lead to similar and consistent claims among the chicken growers.

“Given the predominance of common issues on the elements of antitrust violation and impact, any individualized issues that may arise on this element would not overwhelm the common issues in the case,” Shelby wrote.

Shelby noted that a recent 10th Circuit decision said that the hallmarks of price fixing impacting an entire market include having a standardized pricing structure, a price-fixing conspiracy and an artificially inflated baseline for pricing negotiations.

In 2021, Tyson and Perdue agreed to two settlements worth $35.75 million to resolve broiler chicken antitrust class action lawsuit claims they worked together to decrease profits for chicken growers.

Do you eat Pilgrim’s Pride chicken? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Hausfeld LLP and Berger Montague.

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. is represented by Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP and Foliart Huff Ottaway & Bottom. 

The Pilgrim’s Pride class action lawsuit is In re: Boiler Chicken Grower Antitrust Litigation, Case No. 6:20-md-02977-RJS-CMR, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

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