Pilgrim’s Pride antitrust plea delayed again to January

GREELEY — Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. (Nasdaq: PPC) is set to plead guilty to federal anti-competitive early next year after receiving another delay.

The Greeley chicken-packer was first scheduled to plead in early November, but that was later moved to Dec. 2. On Tuesday, a federal judge moved the plea hearing to Jan. 5 next year, according to filings with the U.S. District Court of Colorado.

Pilgrim’s Pride agreed to pay $110.52 million in fines to the U.S. Department of Justice in October to settle allegations tied to a larger investigation into price-fixing among major chicken suppliers.

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The plea does not affect the ongoing federal prosecution of former Pilgrim’s Pride CEOs Jayson Penn and William Lovette, or former company executives Roger Austin and Jimmie Little, who all face charges of violating the Sherman Antitrust Act.

Those charges carry penalties of up to 10 years in prison and up to $1 million in fines.

A number of food companies and restaurants, including White Castle, Golden Corral, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. (Nasdaq: CBRL) and Bob Evans Farms Inc. have sued Pilgrim’s individually over potential losses from antitrust violations.