Minnesota joins USDA partnership to enhance competition in agriculture

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - To improve competition in the livestock industry, Attorney General Keith Ellison announced Thursday that Minnesota has joined the new Agriculture Competition Partnership of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). 

Unfair markets in agriculture can lead to artificially higher prices for consumers and farming communities. But this partnership aims to enhance competition and protect consumers in food and agriculture markets, Ellison said. 

"Agriculture markets have seen significant consolidation and decreased competition, which make it harder for Minnesotans — be they farmers, ranchers, or consumers — to afford their lives," Ellison said. "I’m gratified that the Biden Administration has granted my request for new resources for state attorneys general to partner with the Administration, and that this large, bipartisan partnership has come together to take advantage of it on behalf of our states’ producers and consumers."

This partnership now helps local governments be able to tackle anticompetitive market structures that raise prices and limit choices for consumers and producers.

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office is investigating the history of competition issues in the food market and is filing a lawsuit against Syngenta and Corteva (pesticide distributors) for "loyalty programs" that exclude generic competitors from the market. Minnesotans can report behavior like this to the attorney general's office here. 

Wednesday marked the second anniversary of President Joe Biden’s executive order on promoting competition in the American economy. And with this partnership extending to 31 states so far, it is proving to be beneficial to grocery, meat, and poultry processing among other markets.