McDonald’s has some beef with today’s largest meat packers.

The fast food giant is suing the U.S. meat industry’s “Big Four” — Tyson, JBS, Cargill and National Beef Packing Company — and their subsidiaries, alleging a price fixing scheme for beef specifically. In a federal complaint, filed Friday in New York, McDonald’s accused the companies of anticompetitive measures such as collectively limiting supply to boost prices and charge “illegally inflated” amounts.

This collusion caused the beef market to become “a monopoly in which direct purchasers were forced to buy at prices dictated by (the meat packers),” McDonald’s suit reads — later noting that the injury it has sustained as one of those buyers is what “antitrust laws were designed to prevent.”

McDonald’s alleges that the meat packers’ conspiracy dates back nearly a decade, at least as early as January 2015, and continues today. Its suit argues these companies’ actions violate the Sherman Act, a federal antitrust law.

  • ThePowerOfGeek@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    We’ll isn’t that the pot calling the kettle black. The restaurant chain famous for jacking prices up while shrinking portion sizes and generally screwing their customers in every way they can doesn’t like it when they are getting taken advantage of. Cry me a fucking river. Fuck you McDogsBreath!

    • FenrirIII@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      To be fair, the screwing flows downriver. If the sourcers start getting greedy, the business has to make up the difference by increasing prices.

    • octopus_ink@lemmy.ml
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      1 month ago

      Yeah, I dunno how I missed this article. Makes me laugh that McD’s is going to try something like this.

      https://www.newsweek.com/mcdonalds-inflation-economy-price-increase-joe-biden-1905209

      TheStreet reported that Medium French Fries went from $1.79 in 2019 to $4.19 in 2024, a 134.1 percent increase. A McChicken went from $1.29 to $3.89, a 201.6 percent hike.

      The price of the beloved Big Mac increased 87.7 percent, from $3.99 to $7.49. An order of 10 McNuggets rose by 68.8 percent, from $4.49 to $7.58. Of the five popular products examined, cheeseburgers saw the largest price increase—going from $1 to $3.15, a 215 percent spike.

      These increases exceed the general average for inflation calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which shows that prices went up by about 21.5 percent between the end of 2019 and March 2024.

  • jaybone@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    If it’s beef, they why have their chicken nuggets also doubled in price in the last couple of years? Oh, this goes back almost a decade you say? So why did you double or triple prices post pandemic?

    • bitwaba@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      Dude it’s literally right there at the beginning of the post

      The fast food giant is suing the U.S. meat industry’s “Big Four” — Tyson, JBS, Cargill and National Beef Packing Company

      • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        You can’t honestly think McDonald’s trying to blame their massive price increases solely on their meat providers is valid.

        • bitwaba@lemmy.world
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          1 month ago

          I said nothing of the sort. I was responding to the OPs question.

          If it’s beef, they why have their chicken nuggets also doubled in price in the last couple of years?

          It’s right fucking there at the beginning. They’re suing Tyson chicken as well.

          • JWBananas@lemmy.world
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            1 month ago

            It’s right fucking there at the beginning. They’re suing Tyson chicken as well.

            Wat.

            The fast food giant is suing the U.S. meat industry’s “Big Four” — Tyson, JBS, Cargill and National Beef Packing Company — and their subsidiaries, alleging a price fixing scheme for beef specifically.

            Where do you see anything about chicken? Are you under the impression that Tyson only deals in chicken?

            It’s “right fucking there at the beginning.” It says “beef specifically.”

          • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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            1 month ago

            You can get mad at me, but I’m far from the only one who thought that’s what you were suggesting.

  • ChickenLadyLovesLife@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    “This is an absurd accusation. We make money by employing children and undocumented immigrants and violating safety standards, not by colluding on prices.” -US meat industry

    • linearchaos@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      And they’ll certainly reduce their prices once they get their supply chain work down right? … Right?

      • Treczoks@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        Maybe not a real monopoly, but a sufficiently big player that usually has no problems of using their buying power to squeeze the blood out of their suppliers.

  • TrueStoryBob@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    Tell your boyfriend, if he says he’s got beef, that I’m a vegetarian and I ain’t fucking scared of him.

  • BonesOfTheMoon@lemmy.world
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    1 month ago

    Now that I’m vegan these articles are so bizarre to me. Oh the price of corpse has gone up? And the industry that produces said corpse is price gouging? That’s nice I’ll have these lovely inexpensive chick peas for dinner and not participate in death and abuse and rape, and my health will be better for it. It’s pretty easy to do.