A group of fast food chains have sued the Big Four packers, alleging price fixing. Sonic, Arby’s, Burger King, Whataburger, Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. are suing Cargill, Tyson, JBS and National Beef, alleging the packers have been fixing prices since 2015.
In November, a federal court combined several claims brought against the packers by major retailers and industry groups and has added the restaurants’ claims to the mix.
The restaurant companies asked for a jury trial, alleging the packers’ actions have violated the Sherman Act. The companies also ask the court to enter a judgment against the packers for three times the damages sustained.
“The witness has confirmed that all of the defendants agreed to reduce their cattle purchases and slaughter volumes for the purpose and effect of increasing their margins,” the lawsuits said.
“Defendants’ transactional data and slaughter volumes records, information published by the USDA, and defendants’ public calls for industry-wide slaughter capacity reductions corroborate witness one’s account.”
