Tyson Foods

Who owns it

• Tyson Limited Partnership71.7%news_article · 2024-01-01

What’s documented

• 2026-12-31politicalDonationCorporate PAC contributed ~$546,250 to federal candidates/committees (2026 cycle).source →
• 2026-05-29laborRelationsA federal judge approved an $87.5 million settlement on May 29, 2026, resolving consumer claims that Tyson Foods ($55M) and Cargill ($32.5M) conspired with other beef processors to limit competition and inflate beef prices between 2014 and 2019. The DOJ separately opened a criminal investigation into whether Tyson, Cargill, JBS, and National Beef reached illegal agreements over cattle purchases.source →
• 2026-05-26otherAn ASPCA report found the USDA failed to act on 90% of documented Animal Welfare Act violations in FY2023, with only 77 inspectors covering 17,000+ facilities. In February 2026, the USDA, DOJ, DHS, and HHS launched a coordinated crackdown on chronic dog welfare violators. In May 2026, 50 House members wrote to HHS Secretary Kennedy requesting stronger animal welfare standards. Major meat processors like Tyson operate under this oversight regime.source →
• 2026-04-16regulatoryAction1000 SEC filings on record (506 4, 155 8-K, 47 4/A, 46 3, 36 10-Q)source →
• 2026-04-15regulatoryActionThe DOJ opened a criminal investigation in April 2026 into whether the four largest U.S. beef processors — Tyson Foods, Cargill, JBS, and National Beef — reached illegal agreements over cattle purchasing from ranchers. The probe follows years of civil litigation and the $87.5 million consumer settlement, potentially escalating antitrust enforcement from civil penalties to criminal charges.source →
• 2026-04-03laborRelationsOn April 3, 2026, Tyson Foods announced the closure of its processing plant in Rome, Georgia, resulting in 168 layoffs with the facility shuttering by May 31. The closure is part of a broader restructuring that has eliminated nearly 5,000 jobs since late 2025, including the massive Lexington, Nebraska beef plant (3,200 jobs) and Amarillo, Texas facility. The Teamsters had previously won a tentative agreement at the Amarillo plant after a 98% strike authorization vote, securing 32% wage increases, more paid time off, and expanded retirement benefits.source →
• 2026-04-02regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2026-03-28environmentalA Walker County, Alabama jury awarded $70 million in damages to a man who developed a flesh-eating bacterial infection after exposure to contaminated water linked to a 2019 wastewater spill from Tyson's chicken processing plant in Hanceville, Alabama. The verdict, returned in March 2026, is one of the largest environmental liability judgments against a poultry processor. Separately, a federal judge in Oklahoma issued a final judgment ordering Tyson and other poultry companies to pay for cleanup and long-term oversight of the Illinois River Watershed after nearly 20 years of litigation.source →
• 2026-02-20regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2026-02-17environmentalUnder settlement agreements in the Illinois River Watershed pollution case, Tyson agreed to pay $19 million for poultry-operations pollution of the watershed in Oklahoma. Judge Gregory Frizzell issued a finding of fact that the ongoing pollution constituted irreparable harm and that the poultry companies violated Oklahoma statutes prohibiting pollution of state air, land, and waters.source →
• 2026-02-11regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: FORM 8-Ksource →
• 2026-02-09regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2026-02-02regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2026-02-02regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-12-31lobbyingReported ~$1,710,000 in US federal lobbying activity (2025) on Agriculture, Animals, Energy/Nuclear, Environment/Superfund…; lobbied 13 government entities.source →
• 2025-12-19environmentalA federal judge in Arkansas ordered a 30-year pollution abatement plan for poultry operations in Northwest Arkansas, including Tyson — directing measures to reduce phosphorus runoff and other slaughterhouse-derived pollutants in the Illinois River Watershed. The order followed years of litigation and findings of irreparable harm.source →
• 2025-12-15regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-11-21regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-11-10regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-09-05regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-08-21legalProceedingA Tyson Foods shareholder filed a Delaware Court of Chancery §220 books-and-records lawsuit on August 21, 2025 alleging mandatory company-supplied feed includes mouldy or "unwholesome" feed that causes contract-farm chickens to starve, and that sickly birds are euthanized in ways that violate local laws.source →
• 2025-08-21legalProceedingA Tyson Foods shareholder, represented by Legal Impact for Chickens, filed a Section 220 books-and-records lawsuit in Delaware Court of Chancery on August 21, 2025, seeking documents on animal welfare, worker safety, and alleged child-labor concerns after a December 2024 records request went largely unanswered. The Court of Chancery held a trial on the records request on December 9, 2025.source →
• 2025-08-15laborRelationsDepartment of Labor investigations referenced in 2025 court filings continued to surface Tyson Foods' contractor relationship with Packers Sanitation Services (PSSI), previously cited for employing minors in slaughterhouse cleaning work. The PSSI matter is referenced in the August 2025 Tyson shareholder books-and-records suit.source →
• 2025-08-15legalProceedingIn August 2025, shareholder Michael Castagna filed suit in Delaware's Court of Chancery seeking inspection of Tyson Foods' books and records to investigate potential wrongdoing related to treatment of chickens, child labor, and worker safety. The complaint cited prior Department of Labor allegations involving Tyson's contractor Packers Sanitation Services (PSSI) and an Animal Outlook undercover investigation.source →
• 2025-08-07regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-08-04regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-05-08regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-05-05regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-04-18regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-04-10legalProceedingTyson Foods agreed in 2025 to pay $85 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging conspiracy with JBS and other meatpackers to artificially raise pork prices. The settlement was the largest single-company recovery to date in the consolidated pork antitrust litigation.source →
• 2025-04-01otherMercy For Animals continued documenting animal cruelty in Tyson's poultry supply chain through 2024–2025 undercover investigations, including birds bred to grow so fast they collapse under their own weight and workers killing animals while still conscious. Tyson supplies McDonald's, Burger King, Walmart, KFC, Wendy's, and Chick-fil-A.source →
• 2025-03-20legalProceedingFollowing an Animal Legal Defense Fund lawsuit, Tyson Foods agreed in 2025 to discontinue marketing claims describing its beef as 'climate-smart' or aligned with 'net-zero' emissions targets. The settlement resolved allegations of consumer-deceptive environmental marketing.source →
• 2025-02-25regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-02-10regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2025-02-03regulatoryActionSEC 8-K material event filing: 8-Ksource →
• 2024-12-31lobbyingReported ~$990,000 in US federal lobbying activity (2024) on Agriculture, Animals, Energy/Nuclear, Environment/Superfund…; lobbied 6 government entities.source →
• 2024-12-31politicalDonationCorporate PAC contributed ~$511,000 to federal candidates/committees (2024 cycle).source →
• 2024-11-07legalProceedingThe owner of Jannat Farm, a Tyson chicken grower, pleaded guilty on November 7, 2024 to two counts of animal cruelty following an Animal Outlook undercover investigation. The farm's manager had previously pleaded guilty in August 2024.source →
• 2024-09-01otherThe Animal Legal Defense Fund filed a complaint with the USDA documenting inhumane animal handling practices at Tyson Foods poultry facilities. Investigators found line speeds of 140 chickens per minute, with facilities processing up to 250,000 birds per day, leading workers to prioritize quotas over animal welfare and food safety regulations.source →
• 2024-08-16regulatoryActionThe USDA's Packers and Stockyards Division opened an investigation into Tyson Foods for potential violations of the Packers and Stockyards Act. The investigation follows longstanding complaints about unfair and deceptive practices toward livestock and poultry producers by the company, which is one of the largest meat processors in the United States.source →
• 2022-12-31politicalDonationCorporate PAC contributed ~$265,500 to federal candidates/committees (2022 cycle).source →

What we’ve classified so far

• worker exploitation6
• environmental damage3
• monopoly abuse1
• misleading claims1

30 further documented actions have not been classified yet. These counts show what we have got to, not a total.