🔎 Tyson Foods under federal investigation

Aug. 22, 2024 The Midwest Center For Investigative Reporting

Inquiry follows company's closure of nine meatpacking plants across US

A branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture is actively investigating Tyson Foods, one of the largest meat companies in the nation, according to interviews with contract growers and a USDA employee.

While the Packers and Stockyard Division would not officially confirm or deny the existence of an ongoing scrutiny, a USDA employee confirmed an active investigation and said the investigation is larger in scale compared to other PSD investigations.

The investigation follows Tyson Foods’ closure of meatpacking plants across the country early last year, a decision that left former contract growers millions of dollars in debt.

Emeritus law professor Peter Carstensen said it is routine for the agency to investigate cases against companies.

“It is somewhat more plausible they are seriously looking at whether they can make a claim that Tyson violated the provisions of the Packers and Stockyards Act by inducing various kinds of investments and then turning around and closing the plants,” he said.

— John McCracken, reporter

Tyson Foods is being investigated by the USDA
By John McCracken, Investigate Midwest

The Packers and Stockyard Division is actively investigating Tyson Foods, one of the largest meat companies in the nation, according to interviews with contract growers and a USDA employee.

The PSD, an arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is tasked with investigating violations of the Packers and Stockyard Act and handing out enforcement actions. The Act was created in 1921 to protect livestock and poultry producers from “unfair, unjustly discriminatory or deceptive practices.”

This investigation follows Tyson Foods’ recent closure of nine meatpacking plants across the country, beginning in early 2023. The company is also in active litigation for alleged violations of antitrust law.

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