Egg Producers Ordered to Pay $17.7M in Price-Fixing Case

Major food manufacturers win damages for a conspiracy to limit egg supply and increase prices; awarded amount could triple to over $53 million under U.S. antitrust law.

Egg producers including Cal-Maine Foods and Rose Acre Farms have been ordered to pay $17.7 million in damages to food manufacturers Kraft, Kellogg, General Mills and Nestlé for a price-fixing conspiracy.
The jury found that the egg producers conspired to limit the domestic supply of eggs to increase prices, causing damages between 2004 and 2008.
The egg producers allegedly used animal welfare guidelines as a pretext to keep supply low and prices high.
The awarded damages could be tripled under U.S. antitrust law to more than $53 million.
Both Cal-Maine Foods and Rose Acre Farms have expressed disappointment with the verdict and are considering an appeal.