On August 26, 2026, Judge Sunil R. Harjani of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted preliminary approval of two additional settlements reached on behalf of the certified class of Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs in In re Turkey Antitrust Litigation: one with Butterball, LLC ($34 million), detailed in Plaintiffs' memorandum in support of their unopposed motion for preliminary approval, and one with Hormel Foods Corporation and Jennie-O Turkey Store, Inc. ($37.5 million), detailed in Plaintiffs' memorandum in support of their unopposed motion for preliminary approval. These settlements join a series of previously approved recoveries the class has secured from other defendants, including Tyson, Cargill, Farbest Foods, Cooper Farms, Agri Stats, House of Raeford Farms and Prestage.
The Court found that both settlements were reached through arm's-length negotiations, are fair, reasonable, and adequate. The certified class covers all persons and entities that directly purchased fresh or frozen, uncooked turkey breast, ground turkey, or whole bird turkey products from the defendants between Jan. 1, 2010, and Dec. 31, 2016, subject to certain product and party exclusions described in the case notice. Notice will begin on Sept. 15, 2026, and class members will have until Oct. 30, 2026, to submit claim forms or file objections. A motion for final approval will be filed by Nov. 10, 2026, and the Court will hold a Fairness Hearing on Nov. 24, 2026, to determine whether the settlements should be finally approved.
Direct purchasers of turkey products may have paid too much due to an alleged illegal price-increasing scheme by food corporations.
- RELATED DOCUMENTS
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- Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Butterball, Hormel & Jennie-O) 08/26/26
- Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs’ Memorandum in Support of Unopposed Motion for Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Butterball) 08/21/26
- Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs’ Memorandum in Support of Unopposed Motion for Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Hormel, Jennie-O) 08/14/26
- Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Raeford, Prestage) 07/30/26
- Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs’ Notice of Settlement (Prestage) 07/14/26
- Order on Motion for Summary Judgment 07/07/26
- Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Agri Stats) 04/16/26
- Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs’ Notice of Settlement (Raeford) 04/16/26
- Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs’ Uncontested Motion for Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Agri Stats) 03/31/26
- Memorandum of Law in Support
- Declaration in Support (Scarlett)
- Declaration in Support (Devery)
- All Plaintiffs’ Memorandum of Law in Opposition to Motion For Summary Judgment (Butterball) 02/27/26
- All Plaintiffs’ Memorandum of Law in Opposition to Motion for Summary Judgment (Perdue) 02/27/26
- All Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Motion for Summary Judgment (Agri Stats) 02/27/26
- All Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Motion for Summary Judgment (Foster) 02/27/26
- All Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Motion For Summary Judgment (Jennie-O, Hormel) 02/27/26
- All Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Motion for Summary Judgment (Prestage) 02/27/26
- Plaintiffs’ Opposition to Motion for Summary Judgment (Raeford) 02/27/26
- Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Cooper, Farbest) 04/09/25
- Motion for Preliminary Approval of Settlements (Cooper, Farbest) 3/25/25
- Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Cargill) 01/30/25
- Order Granting Motion for Class Certification 01/22/25
- Motion for Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Cargill) 01/15/25
- Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Settlement (Tyson) 05/25/21
- Order Denying Motion to Dismiss 10/19/20
- Complaint 12/19/19
According to the lawsuit, for years, major food corporations illegally increased the price of turkey, forcing U.S. direct purchasers, including grocery stores, to pay artificially high prices for ground turkey, turkey breast and whole bird turkey products.
According to the firm’s research, processors involved in the price-fixing conspiracy include: Butterball, Jennie-O (Hormel), Cargill, Farbest Foods, Tyson (Sara Lee/Hillshire), Perdue Farms, Prestage, Cooper Farms, House of Raeford, Foster Farms, and co-conspirators Dakota Provisions, Kraft (Oscar Mayer/Louis Rich), Michigan Turkey, Norbest and West Liberty, which own the following popular brands, among others:
- Applegate Farms
- Butterball
- Carolina Turkey
- Honeysuckle
- Hillshire Farms
- Jennie-O
- Norbest
- Sara Lee
- Shady Brook Farms
- Foster Farms
- SETTLEMENT FIGURES TO DATE
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The following settlements have been reached, or have been granted preliminary or final approval by the court:
Defendant Status Settlement Amount Hormel & Jennie-O Granted Preliminary Approval $37.5 million Butterball Granted Preliminary Approval $34 million Cargill Granted Preliminary Approval $32.5 million House of Raeford & Prestage Granted Preliminary Approval $18.7 million Tyson Granted Preliminary Approval $4.62 million Cooper Farms Granted Preliminary Approval $1.68 million Farbest Foods Granted Preliminary Approval $1.68 million Agri Stats Granted Preliminary Approval Conduct Reform TOTAL $130.68 million
The deadline to submit a claim for the Cargill, Tyson, Cooper Farms and Farbest Foods settlements has passed. Class members can still sign up for notice of future settlements through the settlement administrator. For questions or more information about how to file a claim or ask to be excluded, visit www.TurkeyLitigation.com or call toll-free 1-877-777-9637.
ABOUT THE ALLEGED CONSPIRACY
According to the lawsuit, since at least 2010, turkey producers such as Tyson, Hormel and others colluded to knowingly stabilize turkey production to artificially inflate prices. The turkey producers allegedly engaged in a conspiracy that has cost American direct-purchasers millions of dollars over the years.
The turkey industry rakes in $4 billion dollars a year, and the companies involved in this investigation control the vast majority of the market. Hagens Berman believes that this is a classic conspiracy meant to extract extra profits from purchasers.
CASE TIMELINE
On August 26, 2026, Judge Sunil R. Harjani of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted preliminary approval of two additional settlements reached on behalf of the certified class of Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs in In re Turkey Antitrust Litigation: one with Butterball, LLC ($34 million), detailed in Plaintiffs' memorandum in support of their unopposed motion for preliminary approval, and one with Hormel Foods Corporation and Jennie-O Turkey Store, Inc. ($37.5 million), detailed in Plaintiffs' memorandum in support of their unopposed motion for preliminary approval. These settlements join a series of previously approved recoveries the class has secured from other defendants, including Tyson, Cargill, Farbest Foods, Cooper Farms, Agri Stats, House of Raeford Farms and Prestage.
The Court found that both settlements were reached through arm's-length negotiations, are fair, reasonable, and adequate. The certified class covers all persons and entities that directly purchased fresh or frozen, uncooked turkey breast, ground turkey, or whole bird turkey products from the defendants between Jan. 1, 2010, and Dec. 31, 2016, subject to certain product and party exclusions described in the case notice. Notice will begin on Sept. 15, 2026, and class members will have until Oct. 30, 2026, to submit claim forms or file objections. A motion for final approval will be filed by Nov. 10, 2026, and the Court will hold a Fairness Hearing on Nov. 24, 2026, to determine whether the settlements should be finally approved.
On Aug. 21, 2026, a $34 million settlement was announced with Butterball LLC, and plaintiffs filed a memorandum in support of their unopposed motion for preliminary approval, outlining the plan to notify the class.
“Co-Lead Class Counsel reached the Settlement Agreement with Butterball less than two months before trial through confidential, hard-fought, arm’s-length negotiations,” the filing states. “While both parties were deep into preparing for trial, they also carried on intense and focused settlement negotiations, with multiple video conferences, phone calls, and emails, and ultimately concluding with an in-person mediation…”
On July 30, 2026, Judge Sunil R. Harjani of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted preliminary approval to a $18.7 million settlement resolving Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs' claims against House of Raeford Farms, Inc. and Prestage Farms.
Under the terms of the agreement, House of Raeford will contribute $3.7 million and Prestage will contribute $15 million to the settlement fund. Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs have now reached settlements totaling more than $59 million.
A final approval hearing will be scheduled in the coming months.
In ongoing success for direct purchasers of turkey products, on July 14, 2026, Hagens Berman announced an additional settlement agreement reached with defendants Prestage Foods Inc. and Prestage Farms of South Carolina LLC. Next, the firm will move for preliminary and final approval from the court.
In an order issued July 7, 2026, Judge Sunil R. Harjani ruled that starting Oct. 8, 2026, the direct purchaser plaintiffs will proceed to a jury trial on per se antitrust claims against Butterball, Jennie-O and Prestage defendants that have survived summary judgment.
In discussing the background of the case and allegations that defendants reduced supply, the court stated, “The parties submitted competing economic expert reports with conflicting empirical analyses. Plaintiffs contend that their economic experts’ regression analysis shows Defendants engaged in parallel production constraints.” The court also cited evidence produced by plaintiffs of certain defendants admitting to cutting production and informing other parties of cuts to production. “Here, the economic evidence, both expert analysis and evidence of parallel conduct, suggests an agreement,” the order states. This evidence — email communications and expert witness testimony about a supply restriction agreement — will be presented at trial.
On March 13, 2026, Hagens Berman announced settlements with defendant Agri Stats, Inc. in In re Broilers Antitrust Litigation, In re Pork Antitrust Litigation, and In re Turkey Antitrust Litigation.
The settlements with Agri Stats contain significant conduct reform measures to prohibit future anticompetitive behavior in the protein industry. Further details will be disclosed as part of the preliminary approval process.
On April 9, 2025, the court granted preliminary approval of the $3.375 million settlement with defendants Cooper Farms and Farbest Foods. If all pending settlements are granted approval, total recovery in the case for the direct purchaser class would total $40.495 million. Litigation continues against the remaining defendants.
On March 25, 2025, Hagens Berman filed a motion for preliminary approval of a $3.375 million settlement with defendants Cooper Farms and Farbest Foods. If granted final approval by the court, each defendant would pay $1,687,500 into the settlement fund.
On Jan. 30, 2025, the Hon. Sunil R. Harjani of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted preliminary approval to an icebreaker settlement with Cargill for $32.5 million. The final approval hearing is scheduled for June 18, 2025. Litigation is ongoing against remaining defendants.
On Jan. 22, 2025, U.S. District Judge Sunil R. Harjani of the Northern District of Illinois granted class certification to the direct purchaser class and appointed Hagens Berman co-lead class counsel.
In response, Steve Berman, managing partner and founder of Hagens Berman, released the following statement: “We’re pleased with the court’s decision and see this as continued testament — alongside Hagens Berman’s tandem litigation affecting red meat and chicken — that class-action law has the power to improve the day-to-day lives of millions of people.”
On May 24, 2021, Tyson became the first defendant to settle in this price-fixing litigation, resulting in $4.62 million for direct purchasers of turkey. Attorneys look forward to continuing the case against the remaining defendants and bringing additional relief to plaintiffs.
On Oct. 19, 2020, the district court in the Northern District of Illinois denied the motions to dismiss in this antitrust case.
A federal judge issued an opinion and order largely allowing claims against the nation’s largest suppliers of turkey and Agri Stats to continue, stating, “…Plaintiffs have alleged enough to plausibly suggest the existence of a hub-and-spoke conspiracy among the Turkey Defendants to exchange competitively sensitive information with one another through Agri Stats,” adding that the plaintiffs also adequately allege an anti-competitive effect which harmed consumers.
