Closing Thought–27Nov23

I thought it was about time for me to reinstate the ‘Closing Thought’ portion of my day.

EGG PRICES

A few months ago the word came out that many chickens had to be destroyed because of Avian Flu and there would be a shortage of eggs for market….as soon as word got out supermarkets in my area raised prices of eggs to 6 and 7 dollars a dozen….not all followed suit but the chain stores seem to be more inclined to do so.

I said then that it was all so much bullsh*t.

There has been a legal ruling against some egg producers….

An Illinois jury ruled this week that several major egg producers conspired to limit the country’s supply of eggs in order to raise prices in a case stemming from a federal lawsuit originally filed 12 years ago, per the AP. Kraft Foods, the Kellogg Company, General Mills, and Nestle USA alleged in the lawsuit originally filed in 2011 that producers used various means to limit the US domestic supply of eggs to increase the prices of eggs and egg products during the 2000s, causing them to overpay for eggs. The time frame of the conspiracy was an issue throughout the case; jurors ultimately determined damages occurred between 2004-2008. A jury unanimously delivered its verdict Tuesday in the Northern District of Illinois and damages will be decided in a trial scheduled for next week.

The jury found the egg suppliers and trade groups who participated in the conspiracy were Cal-Maine Foods, United Egg Producers, United States Egg Marketers, and Rose Acre Farms, the family company of John Rust, who’s running for Indiana’s US Senate seat in 2024. Court documents show the defendants denied the claims. However, the jury found the egg suppliers exported eggs to reduce the overall supply in the domestic market, as well as limiting the number of chickens through means including cage space, early slaughter, and flock reduction, court documents say.

The jury found the egg suppliers and trade groups who participated in the conspiracy were Cal-Maine Foods, United Egg Producers, United States Egg Marketers, and Rose Acre Farms, the family company of John Rust, who’s running for Indiana’s US Senate seat in 2024. Court documents show the defendants denied the claims. However, the jury found the egg suppliers exported eggs to reduce the overall supply in the domestic market, as well as limiting the number of chickens through means including cage space, early slaughter, and flock reduction, court documents say.

Bloomberg Law reports lawyers for Cal-Maine Foods “appeared stunned by the verdict,” with two lawyers dropping their heads to their chests and leave them there. For the first time, the defendants have been held liable for their antitrust violations,” Brandon Fox, an attorney representing the food manufacturers, said in a statement. “We are now going to turn our attention to the damages phase.” Bloomberg Law reports the same jury will decide the damages amount in a trial slated for next Wednesday, and whatever number they settle on will be trebled.

I say good!  Make the bastards pay and the candidate should withdraw for being a money grubbing tool.

Turn The Page!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

8 thoughts on “Closing Thought–27Nov23

  1. Egg prices here are stable so far. 6 Large Eggs in a supermarket cost around £1.60 for free range. In small shops, more like £2. So we are well below an average of £4 for a dozen. ($5.05)

    Best wishes, Pete.

    1. All the manipulation of food is shameful….it goes up when gas prices are high and transportation is the reason….but when gas is low nothing comes down….it is rigging by the middle men. chuq

  2. Our price here never went over about $3/dozen and didn’t stay that high for long. Right now they’re down to about $1.20/doz with some places advertising them as low as $0.99/doz. But there is a LOT of competition here. Drive around out in the country and half the homes out there have eggs for sale signs up at very reasonable prices.

    1. They have dropped here as well….I would rather have fresh eggs but I live in a city and there is not much farm land around anymore. chuq

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.