WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD News) — The U.S. Department of Justice has reached a settlement with three of the country’s largest egg producers over allegations they coordinated to inflate egg prices.
According to the Justice Department, Cal-Maine Foods, Versova and Hickman’s Egg Ranch illegally coordinated to inflate egg prices over a three-year period. The agency says collusion, rather than avian influenza, drove the record price increases in 2023.
The companies dispute those claims, saying bird flu reduced egg supplies and pushed prices higher.
Under the settlement, the companies will pay $3.3 million and donate 53 million eggs to food banks, an amount valued at nearly $10 million at retail.
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