A federal court granted plaintiffs in a beef price-fixing case the ability to amend their lawsuit to narrow their claims and strengthen their allegations.
The plaintiffs’ suit is on behalf of feeder cattle producers who sold cattle to beef packers, alleging the packers conspired to fix fed cattle prices.
“Plaintiffs allege that defendants conspired to suppress the price of fed cattle they bought in the United States beginning no later than January 2015, and that defendants’ coordinated conduct caused a collapse in fed cattle prices and a consequent collapse in feeder cattle prices, which harmed plaintiffs,” the complaint read.
The initial complaint represented cow-calf ranchers, but the amended complaint will include indirect sellers who sold feeder cattle directly to a feedlot or finishing operation that then sold to one of the Big Four defendants. The amended complaint also includes new details on animals sold, and alleges packers tracked the price of feeder cattle and hedged futures to manage their risk.
