USDA Delays Rule to Protect Poultry Farmers from Unfair Payment Practices
June 01, 2026 | Source: Civil Eats | by Lisa Held
June 1, 2026 – Despite thousands of comments in opposition, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) finalized a rule today to delay tighter regulations related to how contract farmers are paid within the chicken industry’s notorious “tournament system.”
The regulations were part of a suite of rules finalized under former president Joe Biden that aimed to better enforce the Packers and Stockyards Act, a law passed more than a hundred years ago to protect farmers and ranchers from meatpacker monopolies.
Instead of going into effect on July 1 of this year as planned, the “Poultry Grower Payment Systems and Capital Improvement Systems” rule will now go into effect on December 31, 2027.
In a statement, Farm Action president Angela Huffman said the regulations had been a long-overdue step forward for poultry farmers and expressed disappointment in the delay.