WASHINGTON — A resolution has been announced between the U.S. Department of Justice, 17 state attorney generals, and three of the nation’s largest egg producers involving an antitrust lawsuit that alleged that the companies engaged in a coordinated effort to manipulate the egg market and prices.
This civil lawsuit involved Cal-Maine, the nation’s largest egg producer, headquartered in Ridgeland, Miss.; Hickman’s Egg Ranch, headquartered in Buckeye, Ariz.; and Versova, headquartered in Sioux Center, Iowa.
The settlement terms, pending court approval, have been reported at a total payment of $3.3 million to the states involved, as well as egg donations to food banks and nonprofits in the states involved to total approximately 53 million eggs. The company breakdowns are reported as Cal-Maine, $1.5 million and 30 million donated eggs; Hickman’s Egg Ranch, $1 million and 3.3 million donated eggs; and Versova, $800,000 and 20 million donated eggs.
“No product more quintessentially represents affordability than the price Americans pay for eggs,” Stanley Woodward, U.S. associate attorney general, said in an announcement. “These actions prove this Department’s continued commitment to protecting competition and providing real relief for everyday Americans’ pocketbooks.”
“We are proud that these settlements will keep egg prices competitive and keep money in the hands of consumers across the country,” Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Sarrine of the DOJ’s Antitrust Division, added.
The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, and alleged that Cal-Maine, Hickman’s and Versova worked together between June 2022 and March 2025 in inflating daily egg price quotes in the Urner Barry Publications listings which are used by grocers and others in setting egg price quotations.
Among the DOJ’s other proposed settlements, if approved by the courts, include the defendants from communicating with competitors on bid strategies, prices and timing; and agreeing with competitors on numbers, terms of bids and pricing; as well as other actions the department says are a part of its focus on “anticompetitive practices that lead to higher food prices.”
One of the 17 state attorney generals involved with the case is Iowa’s Attorney General Brenna Bird. Iowa is the nation’s leading egg-producing state, producing more than 13.4 billion eggs annually.
“I’m grateful to the U.S. Department of Justice and the multi-state coalition for conducting a thorough investigation to ensure Iowans can once again enjoy eggs at fair prices,” Bird said.
Commenting on the resolution reached, Cal-Maine, in a release, noted that it, “cooperated fully in the comprehensive review process. The Company denies all wrongdoing and violations of law and continues to believe that such claims are baseless and that its conduct was lawful, appropriate and in the best interest of supplying eggs to the marketplace. Cal-Maine further maintains that the Company’s communications cited in the complaint — which were made primarily by a single former employee — did not impact egg prices in any market.”
Cal-Maine also added that it was a member of an egg cooperative that it left in March 2024, prior to and unrelated to the DOJ’s investigations.
“We are pleased that this agreement enables us to move forward so we can devote our full attention to what matters most: delivering affordable, high-quality eggs and egg-based prepared foods to consumers nationwide, while helping ensure a reliable domestic supply of a nutritious, everyday staple that families depend on,” Sherman Miller, Cal-Maine Foods president and CEO, said.
Miller also provided some context into the time reviewed by the DOJ.
“As farmers, we face extreme variability across supply and demand in dynamic and often unpredictable markets, and the ability to navigate that delicate balance is what makes farmers so valuable to U.S. food security,” he added in the company’s release. “The period reviewed by the DOJ was a particularly challenging time. Temporary supply shocks, including in connection with multiple outbreaks of avian influenza, the COVID-19 pandemic, weather and other market dynamics — compounded by high inflation at the time — caused egg prices to surge periodically over the past five years.”
