Mushroom Price-Fixing Suit Proceeds Against Co-op, Not Farms

Winn-Dixie Stores may proceed with claims that the Eastern Mushroom Marketing Cooperative engaged in a scheme to drive up prices by restricting the supply of fresh Agaricus mushrooms.

But Winn-Dixie and Bi-Lo Holdings LLC failed to provide enough detail to proceed with claims against individual mushroom farmers, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania said.

Asserting broadly that each defendant “participated in the improper conduct alleged” isn’t enough to proceed, the court said. The companies, however, may re-file their allegations with additional details, the court said.

Winn-Dixie and Bi-Lo filed their antitrust action as direct purchasers of mushrooms. The complaint alleges that, ...