Consumer Indirect Purchaser Beef Litigation

The lawsuit: This is an antitrust class action lawsuit that claims several beef processors—including JBS, Cargill, National Beef, and Tyson Foods— entered into a market allocation agreement and stopped competing against each other for market share. The alleged purpose and effect of this agreement was to increase their margins and increase the price consumers paid for beef.

Defendants' Position: The Court has not ruled that the Defendants did anything wrong, and the companies deny all allegations of wrongdoing.

Non-Settling Defendants: JBS USA Food Company, Swift Beef Company, JBS Packerland, Inc., and National Beef Packing Company have not settled.

This lawsuit is called In re: Cattle and Beef Antitrust Litigation. It is pending in the United States District Court, District of Minnesota. The case number is 0:22-md-3031. The Judge overseeing this litigation is Judge John R. Tunheim.

In a class action lawsuit, one or more people sue on behalf of a larger group. The people who represent the group are called “class representatives.” The whole group of people is called a “class.” Individual people in the class are called “class members.”

The Defendants in this case are JBS USA Food Company, Swift Beef Company, JBS Packerland, Inc., Cargill, Inc., Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation (“Cargill”), National Beef Packing Company, LLC, Tyson Foods, Inc., and Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc. (“Tyson”).

Cargill and Tyson, together are “Settling Defendants” and the remaining Defendants JBS USA Food Company, Swift Beef Company, JBS Packerland, Inc., and National Beef Packing Company, LLC, are “non-settling Defendants.”

The Court has not decided who is right. Instead, the Plaintiffs and Defendants have agreed to settle. A settlement is an agreement to stop the lawsuit. That way, it avoids the cost of a trial, and the people in the Class will get money. The Class Representatives and the attorneys think the Settlements are best for the Class.

Two of the defendants, Tyson Foods, Inc., and Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc. (“Tyson”) and Cargill, Inc., Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation (“Cargill”), have agreed to Settlements totaling **$87.5 million** ($55 million from Tyson and $32.5 million from Cargill) to resolve the claims against them. They have also agreed to certain non-monetary relief.

The plaintiffs in this case are a group of individuals who purchased beef products at grocery stores. Their names are: Kenneth Peterson, Jason Falbo, Sharon Dawson-Green, Lisa Melegari, Cindy Abernathy, Andrew Cohen, Marcelo Lopez, Stacey Troupe, Eric Gauchat, Sharon Killmon, Karen Carter, Charlie Morgan, Brent Rasmussen, David Renz, Kent Winchester, Brenda King, Robert Trepper, Michelle Oversen, William Gee, Jacquelyn Watson, John Shupe, Martin Jarmulowicz, Harold M. Nyanjom, Mark Sperry, Dan Campbell, Craig Margulies, Lindsey Lemoi, and Leigh Tiller.

You are included—and may be eligible for a payment—if you are a person or entity who indirectly purchased any of the following beef products for personal consumption between August 1, 2014, and December 31, 2019:

• Beef (fresh or frozen) made from chuck, loin, rib, or round primal cuts.
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• Purchased in one of the following states/jurisdictions (known as "Repealer Jurisdictions" for this case): Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

“Indirectly purchased” means you did not buy the beef products directly from one of the Defendants. Instead, you bought it at a grocery store or supermarket.

Any beef marketed as:

• Premium: USDA Prime, organic, 100% grass-fed, Wagyu, "American-Style Kobe Beef."
• Specialty: No Antibiotics Ever ("NAE"), antibiotic-free, kosher, halal, certified humane.
• Processed: Ground, marinated, seasoned, flavored, breaded, or cooked beef.

Yes. Excluded from the Settlement Class are Defendants, the officers, directors or employees of any Defendant; any entity in which any Defendant has a controlling interest; any affiliate, legal representative, heir or assign of any Defendant; any federal, state, or local governmental entities, any judicial officer presiding over this lawsuit and the members of his/her immediate family and judicial staff, any juror assigned to this lawsuit. Further excluded are purchases of products that contain ingredients other than beef (except for salt or water).

If you are included in the Settlement Class, you can file a claim to receive a pro-rata (equal share) cash payment. This payment will be proportional to the amount of included beef you purchased during the class period.

You do not need to submit a separate Claim Form for the Tyson Foods and Cargill Settlements.

If you stay in the class and do nothing, you will not receive money. If you stay in the class and submit a timely and valid claim, you will receive some payment. If you stay in the class, you cannot sue Cargill or Tyson on your own for these same claims. The Released Claims are detailed in Paragraphs 14-15 of the Cargill Settlement and Paragraphs 14-15 of the Tyson Settlement.

You are not releasing your legal claims against any Defendants other than Cargill and Tyson.

If you do nothing, you will remain a member of the Settlement Class. You will only receive a cash payment if you submit a timely and valid claim. If the Settlements are approved and become final, all Court orders and judgments will apply to you and legally bind you.

You will still have the opportunity to participate in any future settlements or judgments obtained by Consumer Indirect Purchaser Plaintiffs against other Defendants in the lawsuit.

To receive a payment, you must submit a Claim Form with all required information.

• Deadline: Your Claim Form must be postmarked or submitted online by June 30, 2026.
• Online Filing: [Click here to submit a Claim Form.]

Claim forms must be postmarked by June 30, 2026. Claim Forms are also available for download here or the Settlement Administrator by calling 1-877-283-8711 or by writing to:

Consumer Indirect Beef Litigation
c/o Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 3605
Portland OR, 97208-3605

If you change your mailing address or email address after you submit a Claim Form, it is your responsibility to inform the Settlement Administrator of your updated information. You may notify the Settlement Administrator of any changes by writing to:

Consumer Indirect Beef Litigation
c/o Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 3605
Portland OR, 97208-3605

You will get paid after the Settlements are approved and any appeals end. This process can take time. Please check this website for updates.

You may exclude yourself from one or both of the Settlements. You must mail a written request for exclusion, which includes the following:

1. Your full name, current mailing address, and email address (if any);
2. Your personal physical signature; and
3. A statement that you want to be excluded from one or both of the Settlements, such as “I hereby request to be excluded from the Tyson and Cargill Settlements in In re Cattle and Beef Antitrust Litigation.”

The exclusion request must be mailed to the Settlement Administrator at the following address, and be postmarked by March 30, 2026.

Consumer Indirect Beef Litigation
c/o Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 3605
Portland OR, 97208-3605

You cannot exclude yourself by telephone or by email.

“Mass” or “class” requests for exclusion filed by third parties on behalf of a “mass” or “class” of Settlement Class Members or multiple Settlement Class Members where the opt-out has not been signed by each and every individual Settlement Class Member will not be allowed.

No. If you exclude yourself from a Settlement, you will not get money from that Settlement. And if you exclude yourself from all of the Settlements, you will not get money from any of the Settlements in this case.

No. Unless you exclude yourself, you give up any right to sue the Released Parties (Tyson and Cargill) for the legal claims that these Settlements resolve and Release, and you will be bound by all of the terms of the Settlements. You must exclude yourself from this lawsuit to start or continue with your own lawsuit or be part of any other lawsuit against the Released Parties about the Released Claims in this lawsuit. If you have a pending lawsuit, speak to your lawyer in that lawsuit immediately.

Objecting is when you tell the Court that you don’t like something about a Settlement. You must give reasons why you think the Court should not approve it. The Court will consider your views. You can hire your own lawyer to help you, but you don’t have to.

To object, you must send a letter to the Court. Your letter must include:

• Your name,
• Your address,
• Your telephone number,
• Your notice ID number (if you have one),
• The reason(s) you object to one, several, or all of the Settlements,
• Your lawyer’s name (if you have one),
• A statement saying that you object to the Cargill Settlement and/or Tyson Settlement in In re Cattle and Beef Antitrust Litigation (Consumer Indirect Purchaser Actions), No. 0:22-md-03031,
• A statement saying if you (or your lawyer) want to speak at the hearing, and
• Your signature (you must sign the letter).

You must mail your objection postmarked no later than March 30, 2026 to these two addresses:

No. The judge cannot change the terms of the Settlements. He can only approve or not approve the settlements as they are. If the judge agrees with your objection, he may not approve the Settlements.

No. You cannot object to a Settlement if you exclude yourself.

Yes. The judge assigned lawyers from two law firms to represent you and the other Class Members in this lawsuit. The law firms are Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP and Lockridge Grindal Nauen PLLP. These lawyers are called “Class Counsel.”

You will not be charged for these lawyers, and you can contact them for free. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you can hire one, but you may have to pay them.

Class Counsel will ask the Court for an award of attorneys’ fees up to 33 1/3% of the Gross Settlement Amount ($87.5 million plus accrued interest), up to $15 million in expenses and costs incurred, and class representative service awards of up to $2,000 to be paid from the Settlement Funds. Any payment to the lawyers or class representatives will be subject to Court approval, and the Court may award less than the requested amount. The attorneys’ fees, costs, expenses, and service awards that the Court orders, plus the costs to administer the Settlements, will be paid out of the respective Cargill and Tyson Settlement Funds.

When Class Counsel’s motions for attorneys’ fees, costs, expenses, and service awards are filed in the Cargill Settlement and the Tyson Settlement, they will be available here. The motions will be posted on this website before the deadline for objecting to each Settlement.

The judge will hold a hearing to decide if he will approve these Settlements. The judge’s decision after the hearing will affect the rights of all Class Members. The Settlements will only go into effect if the judge approves them and appeals are resolved. If you wish, you may attend the hearing.

The hearing will be May 26, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. CDT, to occur before the Honorable John R. Tunheim at the U.S. District of Minnesota Courthouse, 300 South Fourth Street, Courtroom 14E, Minneapolis, Minnesota or via telephone or video conference.

Please check this website for updates as they are made available.

At the hearing, the Court will consider if it will approve the Settlements. The Court may consider any objections at that time. The judge will listen to people who have asked to speak at the hearing. The Court may also decide how much it wants to pay Class Counsel and the Class Representatives.

No. You do not have to attend the hearing, but you are welcome to attend at your own cost.

If you mail a written objection to the Court on time, the judge will consider it. This is true even if you do not attend the Court hearing to talk about it.

You may also pay your own lawyer to attend, but you do not have to.

Yes. You may ask to speak at the Fairness Hearing. To do so, you must send a letter saying that it is your “Notice of Intention to Appear in In re Cattle and Beef Antitrust Litigation, No. 0:22-md-03031.” Be sure to include your name, current mailing address, telephone number, and signature. Your Notice of Intention to Appear must be postmarked by March 30, 2026, and it must be sent to the Clerk of the Court and the Settlement Administrator. The addresses are:

This website summarizes the lawsuit, the Cargill and Tyson Settlements, and your legal rights. More details are in the Settling Defendants’ Settlement Agreements. You can find a copy of the Settlement Agreements, other important documents, and information about the current status of the lawsuit here. You may get additional information by calling toll-free at 1-877-283-8711 or by writing to:

Consumer Indirect Beef Litigation
c/o Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 3605
Portland OR, 97208-3605