Agri Stats to Confront DOJ Antitrust Suit Over Data-Sharing Plot

Agri Stats Inc. lost a bid to dismiss a Justice Department suit accusing the data company of illegally sharing sensitive information that enabled meat producers to fix prices.

The government’s antitrust enforcers alleged just enough to establish a “substantial risk” of future harm if Agri Stats restarted benchmarking reports it provided to meat processors in the broiler chicken, pork, and turkey industries, Judge John R. Tunheim of the US District Court for the District of Minnesota ruled Tuesday. Agri Stats had stopped issuing the reports in 2019.

The case, filed last year by the DOJ and several states, is among ...