UACES Facebook NALC webinar on May 17 to highlight antitrust litigation in major protein sectors
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NALC webinar on May 17 to highlight antitrust litigation in major protein sectors

“The need to address allegations of anti-competitive conduct in the big three protein sectors of poultry, pork and beef has risen so high on the national radar it has become featured in a Presidential Executive Order.” — Brook Duer

By Drew Viguet
National Agricultural Law Center
U of A System Division of Agriculture

May 11, 2023

Fast facts

  • NALC webinar will discuss cases of anti-competitive behavior in protein industries.
  • Brook Duer, staff attorney at the Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law, is presenting.
  • Registration is online.

(424 words)

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Over the past decade, various agricultural sectors have been subject to allegations of anti-competitive behavior.

However, allegations involving suppliers of beef, poultry and pork recently have drawn much federal scrutiny.

The Department of Justice is investigating industry participants. The Department of Agriculture is drafting proposed rules that would govern the interactions between integrators and growers. Congress is considering proposals that could also impact the industry. In 2021, President Biden signed an executive order, which he says will make the food protein sector more competitive.

Portrait photo of Brook Duer
Brook Duer, staff attorney at the Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law, will present the NALC’s next webinar on May 17.

Federal enforcement, however, is just one piece of the puzzle. Private-party litigation is another major component to the field of antitrust enforcement.    

Brook Duer, staff attorney for the Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law, will provide an update on these sectors in the webinar “Multi-District Antitrust Litigation in the Protein Sectors” on Wednesday, May 17, at 11 a.m. central/noon eastern. Registration, free of charge, is available online.

“The need to address allegations of anti-competitive conduct in the big three protein sectors of poultry, pork and beef has risen so high on the national radar it has become featured in a Presidential Executive Order,” Duer said. “But the private sector, through class action litigation, has been working on these issues for years in federal multi-district litigation and has been making headlines of its own. These efforts present their results through piecemeal settlements with designated classes of downstream plaintiffs totaling hundreds of millions of collective dollars.”

Duer will cover a lot of ground during the presentation.

“In one hour, attendees will be given a global picture of what has been alleged, what has happened so far, and thoughts about what is yet to come in these cases involving all the largest players in poultry, pork and beef,” Duer said.

The Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law is one of the NALC’s partners, aiding the NALC in expanding the development and delivery of authoritative, timely and objective agricultural and food law research and information.

“Brook has presented webinars for the NALC in the past and presents in a way that makes even a complex topic simple to understand,” NALC Director Harrison Pittman said. “We’re looking forward to his presentation on May 17.”

For information about the National Agricultural Law Center, visit nationalaglawcenter.org or follow @Nataglaw on Twitter. The National Agricultural Law Center is also on Facebook and LinkedIn.

For updates on agricultural law and policy developments, subscribe free of charge to The Feed, the NALC’s newsletter highlighting recent legal developments facing agriculture, which issues twice a month.

About the National Agricultural Law Center

The National Agricultural Law Center serves as the nation’s leading source of agricultural and food law research and information. The NALC works with producers, state and federal policymakers, Congressional staffers, attorneys, land grant universities, and many others to provide objective, nonpartisan agricultural and food law research and information to the nation’s agricultural community.

The NALC is a unit of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and works in close partnership with the USDA Agricultural Research Service, National Agricultural Library.

About the Division of Agriculture

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. The Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service.

The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on five system campuses.

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action institution. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate or need materials in another format, please contact dviguet@uark.edu as soon as possible. Dial 711 for Arkansas Relay.

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Media contact:
Drew Viguet      
Communications & Special Projects Coordinator
National Agricultural Law Center
dviguet@uark.edu           

 

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