MADISON, Wis. – Attorney General Josh Kaul joined the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in their launch of a partnership with bipartisan attorneys general. This partnership was created to enhance competition and protect consumers in food and agricultural markets, including in grocery, meat and poultry processing, and other markets. Through a framework established in consultation with the state attorneys general, this new partnership will assist state attorneys general in tackling anticompetitive market structures in agriculture and related industries that are raising prices and limiting choices for consumers and producers.

“Anticompetitive agricultural market structures can artificially raise prices for consumers at grocery stores and for producers,” said Attorney General Kaul. “Through the work of this partnership, we’ll be seeking to increase competition and reduce costs.”

Background on Agricultural Competition Partnership

This new Agricultural Competition Partnership is investing in opportunities to combine state and federal authorities, expertise, and market insights. The agency is also leveraging funds to support complex cases and to jointly support research and academic work for use in future cases.

Focus areas of the Agricultural Competition Partnership include:

• Anticompetitive market structures and practices, as well as price gouging and other anti-consumer practices, in food, retail, meat and poultry processing, and other agriculture industries.
• Lack of choices for consumers and producers.
• Conflicts of interest, misuse of intellectual property, and anticompetitive barriers across the food and agriculture supply chains, such as in seed markets.

Specifically, this initiative will enhance the capacity of state attorneys general to conduct on-the ground assessments of competition and consumer issues, enhance coordination between federal and state agriculture and competition authorities, create new and more independent research programs, and ultimately result in fairer and competitive markets and more resilient supply chains.

In this partnership, Attorney General Josh Kaul is joined by the attorneys general of Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, and the District of Columbia.