444K egg donations on the way to Houston-region food banks

Three food banks in the greater Houston and Southeast Texas region will soon receive thousands of egg donations now that the State of Texas reached a settlement with Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. and Wharton County Foods, LLC, Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a post on X.

The order says the companies have 120 days from the effective date to complete the donations. In the greater Houston and Southwest Texas region, the following food banks are set to receive:

• Houston Food Bank- 30,000 dozen eggs
• Southeast Texas Food Bank- 5,000 dozen eggs
• Food Bank of the Golden Crescent- 2,000 dozen eggs

That’s a total of 37,000 dozen eggs (about 444,000 eggs) that food banks can distribute to feed Houstonians in need.

For more details on the statewide donations, click here.

This donation is part of a settlement that resolves a lawsuit Texas filed in April 2020. In that suit, the state accused the companies of selling eggs at “exorbitant or excessive” prices after Governor Abbott declared the COVID-19 disaster on March 13, 2020-- conduct the state said could violate the Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA).

The lawsuit alleged egg prices rose about 300% as demand increased with more people eating at home under quarantine orders.

• US egg giant Cal-Maine says government is investigating price increases

The lawsuit was settled through an Agreed Final Judgment and Injunction, meaning the case ended with a court order that everyone agreed to. No trial needed.

The settlement states that the companies do not admit to any liability or wrongdoing. With that said, the court-approved agreement requires Cal-Maine Foods, Inc., and Wharton County Foods, LLC to donate 2,160,000 eggs to food banks across Texas and comply with a 10-year court injunction that prohibits the companies from two things:

• Selling eggs at a price that would violate Texas’s price-gouging law (DTPA).
• Demanding a price that would violate the same law.

In other words, the companies can still sell eggs during a declared disaster, but they can’t charge or quote prices that Texas says cross the line into price gouging.

• US egg prices increase to record high, dashing hopes of cheap eggs by Easter

The court order lasts 10 years, and it demands that the companies keep records showing:

• Proof of egg donations (how many, when they were delivered, and which food banks got them)
• Monthly progress emails to Texas and final confirmation about the donations
• Any internal emails or notices telling employees the disaster-period pricing rules.

If the court finds the companies violated the injunction or donation requirements, Texas can return to court to enforce the order.

For more information, the settlement can be found here.