(KIWA Staff Photo)
Sioux Center, Iowa (Sioux County Radio) — The federal government is alleging that a Sioux Center-based egg company conspired with other businesses to artificially inflate egg prices between 2022 and 2025.
The U.S. Department of Justice and 17 states, including Iowa, have filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Versova Holdings of Sioux Center, which owns Trillium Farms, a company managed by Versova Management Cooperative of Sioux Center. The suit also names a Versova affiliate, Centrum Valley Holdings of Sioux Center, Cal-Maine Foods of Mississippi, and Hickman’s Egg Ranch of Arizona. Another entity, identified only as “Co-conspirator Cooperative A,” is based in Aurora, Colorado.
The DOJ simultaneously filed proposed settlements that, if approved, would prevent the companies from coordinating egg-price manipulation, require antitrust compliance programs, appoint compliance officers, and mandate self-reporting of potential violations.
The government alleges that between June 2022 and March 2025, the defendants conspired to inflate daily egg-price quotations published by Urner Barry Publications, a company that reports market-pricing information for eggs. Because many retail contracts are tied to those quotations, prosecutors allege the scheme resulted in higher prices for retailers and consumers.
According to the lawsuit, the companies purchased eggs through electronic trading platforms, such as the exchange operated by Egg Clearinghouse Inc. (ECI), where buyers submit bids and sellers post offers.
Federal prosecutors allege the defendants agreed to submit bids that were unlikely to result in completed sales but would still drive up the price quotations, and by agreeing to execute trades off ECI at premium prices in order to further inflate the price quotations.
The complaint cites several communications between company executives as evidence of the alleged conspiracy.
According to the lawsuit, a Cal-Maine executive texted Hickman’s CEO on October 14th, 2022, saying, “We are bidding up. Let’s hold it today.” Prosecutors allege the two companies later accounted for more than half of all bids submitted that day.
The lawsuit also alleges executives from Versova, Cal-Maine, and Hickman’s discussed pricing during a weekly call on December 19th, 2022. That same day, Hickman’s CEO allegedly emailed the other companies saying, “Need to push the spread into the northwest,” prompting a senior Versova executive to reply that the company’s team would continue bidding for additional loads.
The following day, Hickman’s CEO allegedly repeated his request, emailing the companies to consider posting “strong bids, early and often” before market reporters could get into work and begin compiling price information. Prosecutors allege the companies collectively submitted dozens of bids that morning, most at premium prices, while all other market participants combined submitted fewer than six.
On December 21st, 2022, the CEO of the unnamed Colorado cooperative allegedly encouraged the group to continue bidding, writing, “As a group we need to bid like they vote in Chicago — early and often.” The Justice Department alleges those actions helped drive egg prices to record levels in several regions.
The lawsuit also claims the companies lobbied Urner Barry in 2024 to publish higher price quotations while placing less weight on transactions that could have lowered reported prices.
Federal officials said the published quotations dropped significantly after the companies learned they were under investigation in early 2025.
The lawsuit does not include any information regarding the total profits or increased revenue generated by the alleged conspiracy.
Versova Holdings could not be reached for comment before publication.
