Egg producers to donate 53 million eggs after price-fixing settlement
Three major U.S. egg companies will provide 53 million eggs to food banks as part of a settlement over alleged price-fixing.
Seventeen states brought a lawsuit against Cal-Maine Foods, Versova and Hickman’s Egg Ranch, accusing them of secretly working together to influence benchmark egg price quotations. The companies have agreed to a settlement announced on Aug 5 that includes a donation of 53 million eggs to food-bank networks across the United States and a payment of $3.3 million to the affected states. New York Attorney-General Letitia James described the alleged conduct as a violation of price-fixing laws.
The first batch of 280,280 eggs was delivered to Brooklyn, and New York will receive a total of 4,968,000 eggs. Additional deliveries are planned through October for states including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont and Wisconsin. The settlement also obligates the firms to modify their practices to prevent future violations.
Why it matters
The agreement aims to curb anticompetitive behavior in the egg market and provides millions of eggs to families in need.
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