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US: Egg cartel lawsuit pinpoints price-fixing plans to one economist

By  |  September 9, 2014

An Indiana-based supermarket chain has filed a federal lawsuit accusing the US’s largest egg trade group of conducting a conspiracy to fix the price of eggs across the nation, according to reports.

United Egg Producers and its member companies are accused of manipulating supplies in various ways to hike the price of eggs in the nation, the complaint filed by Marsh Supermarket says.

The lawsuit trades the collusion back to a single research economist, Don Bell, who developed a plan for egg companies in 1994 to restrict supplies. Reports say UEP is accused of using that plan and, later, allowing independent egg companies to join its group to ensure those independent companies did not increase the egg supply.

It is unclear the level and nature of the damages Marsh is seeking through the lawsuit.

Full content: Courthouse News Service

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