By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com
A class-action lawsuit that alleged that the Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), a 15,000 member dairy farmer cooperative sought to limit competition across the Southern U.S. for farmer’s milk. The DFA was scheduled to go on trial on Tuesday, but reached a settlement for $158.6 million, which applies to farmers in 14 southeastern states. The DFA has since agreed to change its conduct in the southeast which includes working towards ways to increase raw-milk prices. The lawsuit alleged that major milk processors stopped buying milk from dairy farmers, which then required them to market their milk through the DFA – who then in turn flooded the market with excess milk that led to depressed milk prices. Dairy Farmers of America operated out of Kansas City and sells milk from its farmers to processors.