Ribs Expensive? JBS to Pay $20 Million in Pork Price Fixing Settlement

Giant pork producer JBS has agreed to pay $20 million to settle a lawsuit with consumers alleging they conspired with other meat companies to inflate the price of pork. While JBS admitted no wrongdoing in the settlement, this is just the latest in a string of meat price fixing settlements for large meat producers.

How Did They Allegedly Fix Prices?

Large pork producers including Hormel, Tyson Foods and JBS control more than 70% of pork production nationwide. They use a data platform called Agri Stats to allegedly share confidential information about price, capacity and demand. This data could be used to limit the supply of hogs and inflate prices. There is an ongoing lawsuit against Hormel and Tyson Foods for price fixing, which JBS agreed to cooperate in as part of their settlement.