Surprising turns in a federal lawsuit pitting dairy farmers in the Southeast against the organizations responsible for marketing and buying their milk has many wondering what will happen next as the case moves toward trial, now scheduled for September.
After decertifying from the class action suit farmers who are members of the large, national cooperative Dairy Farmers of America — which is also a defendant in the case — U.S. District Court Judge J. Ronnie Greer granted Dean Foods' motion to vacate the $140 million settlement announced in July. The case is being tried in Greeneville, Tenn.
The suit, filed in 2008, charges Dallas-based Dean, DFA and other parties with colluding to establish anti-competitive practices that plaintiffs claim have artificially suppressed farm milk prices in the Southeast over the recent decade.
Exactly how many farmers remain members and potential beneficiaries of any settlement agreement or court decision remains unclear. According to the decertification order, "more than 2,000 farmers" were DFA members. Before the decertification, attorneys for the plaintiffs said about 7,200 dairy producers were members of the class.
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