An Idaho-based cattle company is suing a livestock supplier for nearly $11 million for alleged Packers and Stockyards Act violations, breach of contract and fraud.
Roman Cattle Company of Idaho Falls, ID, filed suit against Producers Livestock Marketing Association of North Salt Lake, UT, in mid-December, claiming it has suffered damages of at least $10.8 million due to Producers’ actions that include overcharging and failing to provide quality cattle.
“Producers used its vague invoicing practices to hide the source of the cattle, additional fees, and a higher commission than the parties had agreed,” Roman Cattle Co. alleged in court documents.
The company sent more than 100 shipments of cattle, or about 29,1000 head, to a processing plant in Idaho between January and September 2025 under contract terms with Producers Livestock, paying the livestock supplier about $72 million.
Producers Livestock Marketing Association has denied any allegations.
Complaint details
Roman Cattle Co. is a cattle dealer that buys cattle and delivers them to a processing facility in Idaho for slaughter, then sells the beef to distributors and retailers. Producers Livestock, while Utah-based, conducts business in Idaho.
In January 2025, Roman Cattle Co. and Producers Livestock came to an agreement for the cattle dealer to receive “high-quality cattle” purchased by Producers Livestock directly from cattle ranchers or dairy farmers, according to court documents. Doing so directly would avoid the additional costs associated with purchasing cattle at sale barns.
The terms of the contract included the following:
• Roman Cattle Co. would pay for all cattle, plus a commission of $1.50/cwt.
• All cattle would be purchased directly from ranchers or farmers, and no cattle would be purchased from sale barns, including Producers Livestock-owned sale barns.
• Producers Livestock would ship all cattle using the cattle dealer’s preferred vendor, Cow Tran 2.0. Freight prices would be paid by Roman Cattle Co. directly to Cow Tran 2.0.
In March, Roman Cattle Co. and Producers Livestock met once again, agreeing that the cattle supplier’s commission would decrease from $1.50/cwt to $1/cwt.
Producers Livestock would acquire cattle and ship them to Roman Cattle Co. and then invoice the cattle dealer for the total amount due. However, invoices did not show the source of the cattle, the price Producers Livestock paid to the seller of the cattle, specific commission amounts, or any added fees, including third-party commissions, the cattle dealer said.
Roman Cattle Co. alleged Producers Livestock hid the source of cattle, fees and a higher commission by not including the information on invoices.
“Roman had trusted Producers would fully comply with the terms of the Contract,” court documents read. “However, during the course of the relationship and by Producers’ own admission, Producers charged commissions above the agreed $1.50/cwt or $1.00/cwt price.”
Around June, Producers Livestock and Roman Cattle Co. agreed to additional terms regarding cattle quality. The supplier would deliver cattle grading at Choice or higher and provide a discount for cattle that graded less than Choice. For beef graded as Select, a discount of 45 cents per pound would apply, and for beef that did not grade, a $1.05/lb. discount would apply.
“Given that the grading of the beef from slaughtered animals could occur after Roman was obligated to pay Producers for the loads of cattle, the parties agreed Producers would provide the discount as a credit on the next invoice for the next load of cattle ordered by Roman,” the complaint read.
However, Producers Livestock failed to provide credits on loads that graded below Choice, Roman Cattle Co. alleged.
Around September, Roman Cattle Co. discovered through an email communication with Producers Livestock that the cattle supplier had increased commission from $1/cwt to $1.50/cwt without agreement. The cattle dealer then requested all invoices since June, but Producers Livestock did not deliver all requested records, court documents read. Roman Cattle Co. since requested all supporting documentation for all purchases since January.
In mid-October, Roman Cattle Co. withheld all sums the cattle supplier claimed were owed for the months of September, October and November, totaling $11,060,792.82. The cattle dealer said it would withhold all payments until all the supporting records justifying the charges were provided.
Upon review of records that were provided, Roman Cattle Co. found several issues that violated contract terms, the dealer said. It was discovered that Producers Livestock had charged a higher commission since January, overcharging the cattle dealer at least $240,000 in commission fees. In addition, of the cattle supplied, about 49% were supplied from sources other than ranchers, including sale barns. Roman Cattle Co. estimated those damages at $4,000,000, or more.
Court documents also claim that Producers Livestock charged Roman Cattle Co. third-party fees without the dealer’s approval, overcharging by at least $74,000.
The complaint also noted that the supplier had supplied beef grading below Choice about 50% of the time, causing Roman Cattle Co. to incur damages of at least $650,000. Producers Livestock also did not ship cattle using CowTran 2.0, resulting in additional freight charges that totaled at least $360,000.
“Producers’ deceptive conduct left Roman without necessary cattle supplies and without sufficient and reasonable notice of the same, meaning Roman was unable to fulfill orders with Roman’s customers,” the complaint read. “As a result, Roman lost sales and damaged customer relationships.”
With no cattle to fulfill customer orders, the dealer had to stop work at its plant but still pay employees, resulting in incurred damages for lost labor of at least $650,000, the company said.
“In engaging in these unjust and unfair practices, Producers has compromised the integrity of the marketing process and caused anticompetitive harm, as its actions disrupted transparency, trust, efficiency, and product quality across the cattle supply chain,” Roman Cattle Co. said. — Anna Miller Fortozo, WLJ managing editor
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