Consumer, Farmer and Immigrant Rights Groups Call for Rejection of Weak Egg Price-Fixing Settlement
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Public Citizen, Farm Action, Consumer Federation of America, Food & Water Watch and LULAC were among more than a dozen organizations formally signaling their opposition to the weak final settlements proposed in a case alleging a major egg price-fixing conspiracy. Members of the organizations also submitted more than 7,500 comments opposing the proposed final judgments in United States et al. v. Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. et al.
“The U.S. government complaint in this case alleged, in great detail, an extensive anti-competitive conspiracy that drove up the price of eggs – a staple of the American diet – for consumers across the country,” the coalition letter states. “The complaint alleges the defendant companies engaged in coordinated and intentional manipulation of bidding processes on commodity markets in a manner that drove up prices for consumers.”
“The proposed settlements fail to adequately remedy the alleged harm to competition or to provide sufficient safeguards against future anticompetitive conduct,” the letter states. The proposal requires no admission of wrongdoing. It extracts commitments of the defendants that go little beyond existing law. And it imposes very modest financial obligations on the defendants. The obligations on Defendant Cal-Maine, for example, approximate $2.775 million—about 0.23% of the $1.22 billion in profit the company reported in fiscal year 2025
“Families were left struggling with the cost of eggs while the Department of Justice’s allegations suggest these companies willingly and happily rigged the market,” said Jonah Minkoff-Zern, co-director of Public Citizen Democracy Campaign. “A settlement is worth less than a quarter percent of annual profit isn’t anywhere close to accountability for the serious allegations the Justice Department has made.”
“While Americans were told avian flu explained soaring egg prices, Farm Action started raising alarms in 2023 because the numbers didn’t add up,” said Angela Huffman, President and CEO of Farm Action. “DOJ’s investigation uncovered something even more troubling: executives allegedly coordinating to drive prices higher for nearly three years. If this doesn’t warrant serious consequences, what does?”