Colorado-based JBS didn't admit any wrongdoing as part of the settlement, and company spokeswoman Nikki Richardson said JBS will continue to defend itself against other plaintiffs in the case, but she said JBS decided the settlement was 鈥渋n the best interest of the company.鈥�
A federal judge reviewed the settlement at a hearing Thursday and will rule later whether to approve it. The plaintiffs' attorney, Dan Gustafson, said the deal could serve as an 鈥渋cebreaker鈥� in the case that could lead to additional settlements in the case that also involves Tyson Foods, Cargill and National Beef. Those three companies, along with JBS, control more than 80% of the U.S. beef market.
Similar settlements and lawsuits have previously been announced in the and processing businesses.
The beef lawsuit filed by grocery stores and wholesalers accused the companies of working together to suppress the number of cattle being slaughtered starting in 2015 to help drive up the price of beef.
The giant beef processors have argued that supply and demand factors, not anticompetitive behavior, drive the price of beef and the amount ranchers receive for cattle but the industry's practices have been questioned by the White House and Congress.
The Biden administration on finding ways to increase competition in the meat processing industry to help reduce food prices, and the USDA plans to invest $1 billion to help independent slaughterhouses expand. The Justice Department has been investigating potential price fixing in the industry at least since 2020, but it hasn't provided any updates on its findings.
On Thursday, the USDA and DOJ launched a new website to make it easier for farmers and ranchers to report any concerns about in the industry.
U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, who has proposed requiring beef processors to disclose more about the prices they pay ranchers to bolster competition, said the settlement validates the concerns he hears from ranchers even though it represents just a 鈥渟pit in the ocean compared to JBS鈥� record profit throughout the pandemic.鈥�
鈥淚f there were any doubt about the shenanigans big packers play to line their pockets at the expense of consumers and independent producers, look no further than JBS鈥� $52.5 million settlement in price-fixing litigation,鈥� said Grassley, the Iowa Republican.
The head of the National Cattlemen鈥檚 Beef Association trade group, CEO Colin Woodall, said the settlement reinforces the need for the Justice Department to wrap up its investigation.
鈥淐attle producers do not have years to wait for the government to determine whether there has been wrongdoing 鈥� we demand answers now,鈥� Woodall said.
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