Sugar Price Fixing Lawsuit: Did Your Business Pay Artificially Inflated Prices?
The antitrust attorneys of McCune Law Group (MLG) are investigating claims that major granulated sugar producers – including ASR Group, Domino, United, Michigan Sugar, and Louis Dreyfus – allegedly conspired to artificially inflate the price of granulated sugar in the United States beginning at least as early as January 2019. Restaurants, bakeries, coffee shops, confectionaries, and other commercial purchasers in Michigan, Missouri, Colorado, Maryland, and beyond may have paid above-market prices as a direct result of this alleged conspiracy. If your business purchased granulated sugar from any of these suppliers, contact our firm today for a free case evaluation.
Alleged Granulated Sugar Price-Fixing: Did Your Business Pay Artificially Inflated Prices? Find Out If Your Business Paid More Than It Should Have
The antitrust attorneys at McCune Law Group (MLG) are investigating claims that several of the largest granulated sugar producers in the United States — including ASR Group, Domino Sugar, United, Michigan Sugar, and Louis Dreyfus — allegedly entered into an unlawful agreement to fix the price of granulated sugar beginning at least as early as January 1, 2019. According to a class action lawsuit filed in federal court, these producers allegedly used a third-party consulting firm as an intermediary to exchange highly sensitive, non-public competitive information — including pricing, profits, production levels, and forward-looking sales data — in a coordinated effort to keep sugar prices artificially high.
The alleged conspiracy had direct financial consequences for the commercial businesses that purchase granulated sugar at scale — including restaurants, bakeries, coffee shops, and confectionaries across the country. Shortly after United retained Commodity’s services in 2019, granulated sugar prices experienced one of the steepest climbs in industry history, eventually reaching all-time highs during the class period.
Businesses in Michigan, Missouri, Colorado, and Maryland — as well as in dozens of other qualifying states — may have paid artificially inflated prices as a direct result of this alleged scheme and may be entitled to recover the difference between what they paid and what they would have paid in a competitive market. If your restaurant or food business purchased granulated sugar from any of the named suppliers, you may have legal options. Contact our firm today for a free case evaluation.
Who May Qualify
Restaurants, food businesses, and other commercial purchasers of granulated sugar may qualify for legal assistance if they meet the criteria below.
Your business may be eligible if:
- Your business is a commercial purchaser of granulated sugar, such as:
- Restaurant, café, or food service establishment
- Bakery, pastry shop, or confectionary
- Coffee shop or beverage business
- Food manufacturer, distributor, or other commercial food business
- Your business is located in one of the following qualifying states (priority states are Michigan, Missouri, Colorado, and Maryland):
- Michigan, Missouri, Colorado, Maryland
- Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Washington D.C., Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, or West Virginia
- Your business purchased granulated sugar — directly or through a wholesaler, distributor, or reseller — from one or more of the following suppliers during or after January 2019:
- ASR Group / Domino Sugar (including C&H Sugar)
- United (United Sugar Producers or United Sugar Cooperative)
- Michigan Sugar / Michigan Sugar Corporate Family
- Louis Dreyfus
- Your business has documentation of its granulated sugar purchases, such as invoices, receipts, or supplier statements. Records do not need to be complete, but some documentation is required.
What Commercial Granulated Sugar Purchasers Experienced
Restaurants, bakeries, coffee shops, and other food businesses across Michigan, Missouri, Colorado, Maryland, and the rest of the qualifying states rely on granulated sugar as a core ingredient and operating cost. According to the class action complaint, businesses that purchased granulated sugar from the named producers during the class period may have paid prices that were deliberately inflated above what a competitive market would have allowed.
The alleged impact on commercial purchasers includes:
- Paying significantly higher per-unit prices for granulated sugar beginning in or around 2019
- Experiencing steep, historically unusual price increases that coincided with the alleged conspiracy period
- Being unable to negotiate competitive pricing due to the alleged coordination among the largest domestic sugar producers
- Absorbing elevated sugar costs that affected overall food production and operational margins
- Having no visibility into the fact that prices were allegedly being coordinated rather than set by a competitive market
If your restaurant or food business purchased granulated sugar from ASR/Domino, United, Michigan Sugar, Louis Dreyfus, or their affiliated distributors in Michigan, Missouri, Colorado, Maryland, or another qualifying state, contact our firm to discuss your potential claim.
How to Start Your Business’s Potential Granulated Sugar Antitrust Case
If your restaurant, bakery, or food business purchased granulated sugar from one of the named suppliers during or after January 2019, the following steps can help you evaluate and pursue your potential claim.
- Step 1: Gather Your Purchase Records
Locate any invoices, purchase orders, receipts, or supplier contracts showing granulated sugar purchases from ASR/Domino, United, Michigan Sugar, Louis Dreyfus, Commodity, or their affiliated distributors. Accounting records identifying granulated sugar as a line-item expense during the class period are also useful. You do not need to have every document — partial records may still be sufficient to evaluate your claim. - Step 2: Contact Our Office for a Preliminary Evaluation
Reach out to our law firm or submit our secure intake form. Provide basic information about your business, the state in which it is located, and which supplier(s) you purchased granulated sugar from during the class period. Our intake team will identify whether your business falls within the qualifying criteria. - Step 3: Schedule a Free Case Evaluation
Our attorneys will review your business’s purchasing history, assess the potential value of your claim, and explain your legal options at no cost to you. We represent commercial plaintiffs in antitrust matters and understand the specific legal standards applicable to indirect purchaser claims in each qualifying state. - Step 4: Preserve Your Documentation
Take steps now to preserve any purchase records, supplier correspondence, and pricing documentation related to your granulated sugar purchases. In litigation, the ability to quantify the overcharge paid during the class period is central to calculating damages. The more complete your records, the stronger your potential claim.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the granulated sugar price-fixing lawsuit about?
A federal class action lawsuit alleges that major U.S. granulated sugar producers — including ASR Group, Domino, United, Michigan Sugar, and Louis Dreyfus — conspired to artificially inflate the price of granulated sugar in the United States beginning at least as early as January 2019. The alleged scheme involved the use of a third-party consulting firm, Commodity, to exchange non-public, near-real-time competitive pricing and production data among the Producer Defendants, enabling them to coordinate prices rather than compete independently.
Can my business sue sugar companies for overpaying?
Your business may not need to file an individual lawsuit to recover what it overpaid. This is a class action, which means eligible businesses are represented collectively. If your business purchased granulated sugar, directly or through a wholesaler or distributor, from one of the named producers in a qualifying state on or after January 1, 2019, you may be entitled to join the class action. Contact our team for a free case evaluation to find out if your business qualifies.
Does my business qualify if it purchased granulated sugar through a distributor rather than directly from a producer?
Yes. You do not need to have purchased granulated sugar directly from a named producer to qualify. The class action specifically covers businesses that purchased through a wholesaler, distributor, or reseller — as long as that supplier sourced from one of the named producers. Our attorneys can help you trace your purchasing chain.
What kinds of businesses are covered by this lawsuit?
The lawsuit specifically identifies restaurants, bakeries, coffee shops, and confectionaries as examples of the types of commercial indirect purchasers affected by the alleged price-fixing conspiracy. Any business that purchased granulated sugar for use in its operations — rather than for personal household use — and that sourced from one of the named producers in a qualifying state may have a potential claim.
What proof do I need to join the sugar price fixing class action?
To qualify, your business will need some documentation of its granulated sugar purchases since January 1, 2019. Acceptable forms of proof include invoices, receipts, supplier statements, or accounting records that identify granulated sugar as a line-item expense. You do not need a complete record, but some documentation is required. If you are unsure whether your records are sufficient, our team can help you determine whether what you have meets the threshold.
What compensation could my business potentially recover?
In antitrust class action cases, commercial purchasers may be entitled to recover the amount they overpaid — that is, the difference between the price they actually paid and the price they would have paid in a competitive market free from the alleged conspiracy. Depending on the applicable state law, additional forms of relief may be available. Our attorneys can assess the potential value of your business’s claim during a free case evaluation.
Contact Our Team of Award-Winning Attorneys Today
If your restaurant, bakery, coffee shop, or food business purchased granulated sugar from ASR Group, Domino, United, Michigan Sugar, Louis Dreyfus, or their affiliated distributors on or after January 2019, your business may have a potential antitrust claim. Businesses in Michigan, Missouri, Colorado, and Maryland are among the top focus areas for this investigation, but qualifying businesses across Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Washington D.C., Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, and West Virginia may also be eligible.
The alleged price-fixing conspiracy affected some of the largest sugar brands in the country, and the financial impact on commercial purchasers — who depend on granulated sugar as an everyday operating cost — may be significant. Contact our firm today for a free case evaluation to determine whether your business may be entitled to recover the overcharges it paid.
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McCune Law Group, APC is responsible for this advertisement. The information provided on this website is for general information purposes only. The information you obtain is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. Use of this website or submission of the online form does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Counsel Richard McCune is licensed to practice only in the state of California. The law firm of McCune Law Group has attorneys licensed to practice law in AZ, CA, GA, MO, NY, and PA. McCune Law Group is a national firm that brings lawsuits in a majority of the states. In states where one of its attorneys is not barred, it does so by filing the complaint along with local counsel barred in that state.
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