Source: Reuters
A Chicago federal judge on Friday approved forming three classes of chicken purchasers and consumers who are suing leading food industry companies over claims they participated in a years-long conspiracy to reduce chicken meat supply and raise prices.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin of the Northern District of Illinois said plaintiffs’ lawyers representing direct purchasers, indirect purchasers and consumers had adequately shown the elements necessary for class certification, including common facts and large numbers of potential class members.
Defendants, including Perdue Farms Inc and Sanderson Farms Inc, broadly contested whether the classes of plaintiffs could commonly show how alleged industry actions caused them harm. Some industry defendants have reached settlements with various classes.
Durkin in December approved $181 million in settlements involving end-user consumers. Tyson Foods Inc last year agreed to pay $99 million, and Pilgrim’s Pride Corp said it would pay $75.5 million.
The companies and others have denied liability.
Restaurants, schools, airlines and hospitals that serve chicken to individuals are among members in the indirect class, and the end-user class includes what the judge described as “nearly every individual consumer of chicken in the United States.” Thousands of wholesale and distributor chicken customers make up the direct-purchaser class.
In his ruling, Durkin said that “whether all defendants’ actions were precisely in lock step does not change the fact that supply decreased in historically unusual fashion from 2008 to 2019.”
A representative from Perdue declined to comment, and a representative from Sanderson did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
Doug Baldridge of Venable, a lawyer for Maryland-based Perdue, and Dan Laytin of Kirkland & Ellis, on the team for Mississippi-based Sanderson, did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
Joe Bruckner of Lockridge Grindal Nauen, a lawyer for the direct purchasers, said on Friday that the “court’s decision is thorough and well-reasoned.”
Dan Gustafson of Gustafson Gluek, is representing commercial and institutional indirect purchasers, and Steve Berman of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro is a lead attorney for end-user consumers.
Dozens of direct-action plaintiffs have filed their own claims and are not participating in parallel class proceedings.
The case is In Re Broiler Chicken Antitrust Litigation, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, No. 1:16-cv-08637.
