If you purchased certain fresh or frozen raw chicken (whole birds with or without giblets, whole cut-up birds purchased within a package, or “white meat” parts including breasts and wings or cuts containing a combination of these), in certain States from January 1, 2009, through December 31, 2020, you may be eligible to receive money from class action Settlements totaling $181 million.
Fieldale Farms Corporation (“Fieldale”); George’s Inc. and George’s Farms, Inc. (“George’s”); Mar-Jac Poultry, Inc., Mar-Jac Poultry MS, LLC, Mar-Jac Poultry AL, LLC, Mar-Jac AL/MS, Inc., Mar-Jac Poultry, LLC and Mar-Jac Holdings, Inc. (“Mar-Jac”); Peco Foods, Inc. (“Peco”); Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (“Pilgrim’s”); and Tyson Foods, Inc., Tyson Chicken, Inc., Tyson Breeders, Inc., and Tyson Poultry, Inc. (“Tyson”) (collectively, “Settling Defendants”) have reportedly agreed to a class action settlement of a lawsuit filed against them in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, styled In re: Broiler Chicken Antitrust Litigation (End-User Consumer Action), Class Action Case No. 1:16-cv-08637 (N.D. Ill.), alleging, among other things, that Defendants and their co-conspirators, who are chicken processors in the United States, conspired to restrict the supply of, and fix, raise, and stabilize the price of chicken, as of January 1, 2009, in violation of federal and state consumer and antitrust laws.
The settling Defendants (Fieldale, George’s, Mar-Jac, Peco, Pilgrim’s, and Tyson) reportedly deny all allegations of wrongdoing in the lawsuit.
Who Is Included In The Chicken Processor Antitrust Class Action Settlement?
The Chicken Processor antitrust class action settlement reportedly includes, unless otherwise excluded, the following settlement class:
All persons and entities who indirectly purchased fresh or frozen raw chicken (defined as whole birds (with or without giblets), whole cut-up birds purchased within a package, or “white meat” parts including breasts and wings (or cuts containing a combination of these), but excluding chicken that is marketed as halal, kosher, free range, or organic) from Defendants or alleged co-conspirators for personal consumption, where the person or entity purchased in California, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island (after July 15, 2013), South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, and Wisconsin from January 1, 2009 (except for Rhode Island, which is from July 15, 2013), to July 31, 2019.
The Pilgrim’s Settlement reportedly covers claims for the period of January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2020.
Other Defendants known as the “Non-Settling Defendants” include Agri Stats, Inc.;Claxton Poultry Farms, Inc.; Foster Farms, LLC, and Foster Poultry Farms; Harrison Poultry, Inc. and House of Raeford Farms, Inc.; JCG Foods of Alabama, LLC, JCG Foods of Georgia, LLC, Koch Foods, Inc., and Koch Meats Co., Inc.; Mountaire Farms, Inc., Mountaire Farms, LLC, and Mountaire Farms of Delaware, Inc.; O.K. Foods, Inc., O.K. Farms, Inc., and O.K. Industries, Inc.; Perdue Farms, Inc. and Perdue Foods LLC; Sanderson Farms, Inc., Sanderson Farms, Inc. (Foods Division), Sanderson Farms, Inc. (Processing Division), and Sanderson Farms, Inc. (Production Division); Wayne Farms, LLC; and Simmons Foods, Inc. and Simmons Prepared Foods, Inc.
What Settlement Benefits Does The Chicken Price Antitrust Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Provide?
If the Chicken Price antitrust class action lawsuit settlement is approved, Tyson will reportedly pay $99,000,000, Pilgrim’s will reportedly pay $75,500,000, George’s will reportedly pay $1,900,000, Peco will reportedly pay $1,900,000, Fieldale will reportedly pay $1,700,000, and Mar-Jac will reportedly pay $1,000,000 to resolve all Settlement Class members’ claims against the Settling Defendants. All Settlement funds that remain after payment of the Court-ordered attorneys’ fees, costs, and litigation expenses will reportedly be distributed to Settlement Class members on a pro rata basis at the conclusion of the lawsuit or as ordered by the Court.
Settling Defendants have also agreed to provide specified cooperation in the End-User Consumer Plaintiffs’ continued prosecution of the litigation against the Non-Settling Defendants.
To be eligible to receive a payment from any of the Settlements, you must complete and submit a timely Claim Form by December 31, 2022 (although if additional settlements are reached against Non-Settling Defendants, this deadline may be extended). Chicken settlement claim forms can be filed online or via mail.
Where Can You Obtain More Information About The Chicken Processor Antitrust Class Action Settlement?
For more information about the Chicken Processor Antitrust Class action settlement, write to Broiler Chicken Consumer Litigation c/o A.B. Data, Ltd., P.O. Box 173045 Milwaukee, WI 53217, email info@overchargedforchicken.com, call 1-877-888-5428, or visit the Chicken Processor class action settlement website at https://www.overchargedforchicken.com