It alleges that companies linked to Cargill, JBS Canada ULC, Tyson Food and National Beef Packing acted together to “unduly restrict competition related to production, procurement or sales of beef” in Quebec since Jan. 1, 2015.
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A request for a class-action lawsuit has been filed in Quebec Superior Court against the largest Canadian providers of beef, accusing them of conspiring to restrict competition and increase prices of beef sold in the province.
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The lawsuit was filed March 24 by the law firm Belleau Lapointe. It alleges that companies linked to Cargill, JBS Canada ULC, Tyson Foods and National Beef Packing acted together to “unduly restrict competition related to production, procurement or sales of beef” in Quebec since Jan. 1, 2015. It seeks financial compensation equivalent to revenue generated by the artificial increase in retail prices.
A judge must approve the lawsuit before it can proceed as a class action.
“I find this situation exasperating,” said Sylvie De Bellefeuille, the lead plaintiff and a lawyer at Option consumers. “When we talk about meat, and beef in particular, it’s something many people buy for their basic food needs and when it’s people with low income, they have a hard time buying beef, so it’s something that really frustrates me.”
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Plaintiffs say the companies control 85 per cent of the Canadian beef market and 80 per cent of the US market.
The lawsuit comes about two years after attorneys general of 11 states in the US midwest demanded the US Justice Department investigate potential price fixing during the COVID-19 pandemic, and after a similar lawsuit was filed in British Columbia in February that would apply to all of Canada, Bellefeuille said.
Also in February, JBS USA agreed to pay US$52.5 million to settle several lawsuits related to price fixing in Minnesota, without admitting guilt.
Lawyers in the BC and Quebec cases are working together on a “coordinated national strategy,” BC lawyer Reidar Mogerman said.
Cargill spokesperson April Nelson said the lawsuits’ claims “are without foundation” and the company “rigorously competes on the market.”
The other companies could not immediately be reached for comment.