Pork Settlement: $117 Million for Shoppers, Claims Due October 29, 2026
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The pork settlement in the news is the consumer side of In re Pork Antitrust Litigation in federal court in Minnesota. Five pork producers — Tyson, Clemens, Seaboard, Hormel and Triumph — agreed to pay $117.065 million to people who bought raw pork or bacon at a grocery store between June 28, 2014 and June 30, 2018 in one of 24 listed states and jurisdictions. The claim form asks for estimates, not receipts. The deadline is October 29, 2026.
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Reviewed by Leonard Goldberg, Editor · Last updated
What the Pork Lawsuit Alleges
The pork class action alleges that major pork processors — JBS, Clemens, Hormel, Seaboard, Smithfield, Triumph and Tyson — inflated and stabilized the price and supply of pork. According to the lawsuit, they did it three ways: by sharing detailed industry data through a company called Agri Stats, by restraining production, and by using exports to keep domestic supply tight.
The court has not ruled that any defendant did anything wrong, and the companies deny all allegations of wrongdoing. They settled rather than go to trial. Per the court's notice, all defendants have now settled.
Case Details
The case is In re: Pork Antitrust Litigation, No. 0:18-cv-01776 (0:18-cv-1776-JRT-JFD) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, before Judge John R. Tunheim. It was filed on June 28, 2018. Several groups of buyers sue in the same case: direct purchasers (businesses that bought from the packers), commercial and institutional indirect purchasers (such as restaurants), and the Consumer Indirect Purchaser Plaintiffs — ordinary shoppers. Only that last group is covered by the $117 million settlement on this page.
Status: Settled, Claims Open Until October 29, 2026
The settlements are not yet final. The court's notice sets the fairness hearing for December 10, 2026 (some listing sites show December 11 — the official site controls). No money is paid until final approval is granted and any appeals are resolved.
Our news report covers the announcement in more detail: Five pork producers will pay $117 million, Tyson alone $85 million. The official website is OverchargedForPork.com, phone 1-888-287-5434.
Don't miss the claim deadline
Claims are due by October 29, 2026. We'll email you 7 days and 1 day before the deadline.
Who Can File a Claim
You are in the class if all three are true:
1. What you bought: raw pork bacon, or raw pork (fresh or frozen) made from bellies, loins, shoulder, ribs or pork chops. Pork marketed as organic or no-antibiotics-ever is excluded, and so is anything other than bacon that was marinated, seasoned, flavored or breaded.
2. When: between June 28, 2014 and June 30, 2018, for personal or household use — bought at a grocery store or supermarket, not directly from a packer.
3. Where: Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah or West Virginia. Shoppers in the other 27 states are not in this class.
If you filed in the earlier JBS or Smithfield consumer settlements, that claim does not carry over — you must file a new one.
How Much You Get and How the Money Is Split
No per-person amount has been announced. Payments are pro rata — your share is proportional to how much eligible pork you bought, and it shrinks as more people file. Before claimants are paid, the court will consider attorneys' fees of up to 33 1/3% of each settlement (listed by ClaimDepot as up to $39,021,667), up to $5,000,000 in litigation expenses, $3,000 for each class representative, and administration costs.
No proof of purchase is required on the form: you give your best estimate of pounds bought, months of buying and monthly spending. The administrator may ask for documentation later. Payout choices listed for the claim include Zelle, a digital Mastercard, several digital gift cards and a paper check.
How cases like this one end
Our copy of the federal courts’ own case database covers 6,659 antitrust casesclosed in U.S. federal district courts between 2015 and 2025, 37.3% of them filed as class actions:
- 19.7% ended in a settlement recorded by the court. Another 14.4% were dismissed voluntarily, which often follows a private settlement — so the real settlement share sits between 19.7% and 34.1%.
- 11.6% were decided on a motion before any trial.
- 1 in 121 reached a trial (0.8%), after a median of 37 months.
- Median time from filing to the end of the case: 12.3 months.
- Almost none record a money award in this data (32 of 6,659), and the recorded figures are capped, so we do not publish an average.
These are base rates for this type of case (federal antitrust cases) — not a prediction about this lawsuit, and not legal advice. Source: Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (civil), analysed by Settlement Insight. Cases heard in state courts are not included.
Pork Price-Fixing Case Timeline
- 1
June 28, 2018 — Pork Lawsuit Filed
In re Pork Antitrust Litigation begins in the District of Minnesota, alleging packers used Agri Stats to coordinate supply.
- 2
October 2022 — First Consumer Settlement Approved
A $20 million consumer settlement with JBS receives final approval. JBS and Smithfield together paid $95 million to consumers; those claim periods are closed.
- 3
August 11, 2025 — Business Buyers Settle
Final approval of $64 million from Tyson, Clemens and Triumph for direct purchasers. That money is for businesses, not shoppers.
- 4
November 7, 2025 — Tyson Consumer Deal Preliminarily Approved
Judge Tunheim preliminarily approves Tyson's $85 million settlement with the consumer class, which plaintiffs said is about 20 percent of the alleged overcharges.
- 5
August 28, 2026 — Notice and Claims Open
The court's notice announces $117.065 million from five producers plus Agri Stats reforms. Claims, opt-outs and objections are due October 29, 2026.
- 6
December 10, 2026 — Fairness Hearing
The court decides whether to grant final approval and fees. Payments follow only after approval and any appeals.
Three Things to Watch For
A no-receipt claim form and a well-known brand like Tyson make this pork settlement an easy target:
Look-alike claim sites
The only court-approved site is OverchargedForPork.com. Ads promising to “check your pork payout” on another domain, or asking for a Social Security number or bank login, are not the official claim process.
“Pay a fee to release your pork payment”
Filing is free and payments are pro rata after final approval. Nobody can guarantee an amount or speed up a payment for a fee, and the administrator will not ask you to buy gift cards.
Confusion with the business settlements
Headlines about $50 million from Tyson or millions from Hormel often refer to the direct-purchaser or restaurant classes. Those are not consumer payments — only the claim on the official site covers grocery-store shoppers.
Pork Settlement — Questions People Actually Ask
Is the pork settlement real?
Yes. It is a settlement in In re Pork Antitrust Litigation, No. 0:18-cv-01776, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota. The notice was issued in the court's name on August 28, 2026, and points to OverchargedForPork.com and 1-888-287-5434.
What is the deadline for the pork class action claim?
Claims must be submitted online or postmarked by October 29, 2026. Opt-out requests and objections share that deadline.
Do I need receipts?
No. The claim form asks for your best estimates of pounds bought, months of buying and monthly spending. The administrator may request documentation later, so keep any loyalty-card history you have.
How much will I get?
Nobody knows yet. Payments are pro rata to the pork you bought, after fees and costs, and depend on how many people file. No per-person figure has been published.
When will payments be made?
Only after the court grants final approval and any appeals end. The fairness hearing is set for December 10, 2026, so no payment can be issued before then.
My state is not listed. Can I still file?
Not for purchases there. The class covers only purchases in the 23 listed states plus the District of Columbia. Purchases made in a listed state count even if you live elsewhere now.
I got money from the JBS or Smithfield pork settlement. Am I covered?
Not automatically. The JBS and Smithfield claim periods are closed, and this $117.065 million settlement needs a new claim form by October 29, 2026.
What happens if I do nothing?
You stay in the class and give up your right to sue Agri Stats, Triumph, Hormel, Seaboard, Clemens and Tyson over these claims, but you receive nothing. Only a valid claim form gets a payment.
Separate from this case: were you injured in the last 2 years?
Class-action payouts are fixed amounts through an administrator. A personal injury claim is a different case — and often worth far more. Free estimate, no obligation.
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