United Sugar, Domino’s, and other prominent sugar producers have been implicated in a new Manhattan federal lawsuit alleging the manipulation of granulated sugar prices, resulting in inflated costs for buyers in a market exceeding $13 billion. The proposed class action, initiated by New York-based KPH Healthcare Services on Thursday, targets over a half-dozen defendants, including ASR Group (owner of Domino’s), Michigan Sugar, and United. The lawsuit asserts that these entities are breaching antitrust regulations by exchanging competitively sensitive non-public data related to granulated sugar prices, sales volume, and other metrics to influence pricing and stifle competition. According to KPH, there is no valid economic justification for such information sharing beyond distorting prices and restraining market competition. While ASR Group has refuted the allegations, United Sugar and Michigan Sugar have yet to comment on the matter. The lawsuit highlights the impact of the alleged price-fixing scheme on various stakeholders in the food and beverage industry, seeking triple damages and an injunction against anticompetitive practices. The legal action comes in the wake of the Justice Department’s unsuccessful attempt in 2021 to prevent United Sugar’s acquisition of rival Imperial in a bid to curb rising sugar prices, underscoring concerns over market concentration and competitive dynamics within the sugar industry.
Major Sugar Producers Face Lawsuit Over Alleged US Price-Fixing Scheme