Attorney General Gentner Drummond is addressing inaccuracies surrounding the ongoing litigation to protect water quality in the Illinois River watershed, calling out what he describes as a coordinated misinformation campaign by Tyson Foods. The attorney general says the poultry company is trying to intimidate Oklahomans and deflect accountability.
“Tyson Foods is engaging in shameless gamesmanship, using Oklahoma’s hardworking farmers as pawns while threatening to withdraw contracts,” said Drummond. “But Tyson’s actions speak louder than their empty threats. Even as they claim to be concerned about this litigation, Tyson is actively working to acquire additional processing capacity in the watershed. Oklahomans deserve better than corporate intimidation tactics from a company that has repeatedly shown it prioritizes profits over people and environmental responsibility.”
The lawsuit, originally filed in 2005, seeks to hold major poultry companies accountable for polluting the Illinois River watershed with phosphorus from chicken waste. In 2023, U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell ruled in favor of the state and ordered each side to reach an agreement with regard to remedies imposed. After negotiations broke down, the court held a six-day evidentiary hearing and reaffirmed the findings that the watershed is still impaired. Proposed penalties exceeded $100 million against poultry companies Tyson, Cargill, George’s, Simmons and Cal-Maine for violations of the Oklahoma Environmental Quality Code. The attorney general also requested that the companies be required to fund a restoration plan for the watershed.
Recently, local officials and lawmakers have pressured Drummond and the state to abandon or scale back the litigation, following warnings from Tyson Foods about potential reductions to Oklahoma operations. However, reports show Tyson is seeking to increase its production capacity in the watershed through the acquisition of Cargill’s former processing plant in Springdale, Ark., which contradicts claims that it has been forced to scale back operations in the watershed due to the lawsuit.
“Let’s be clear about what’s really happening here,” Drummond continued. “This isn’t about protecting farmers. It’s about protecting corporate profits at the expense of Oklahoma’s natural resources.”
The state’s lawsuit specifically targets the corporate poultry companies responsible for waste management practices, not individual farmers or growers. Oklahoma’s legal action seeks to enforce state laws protecting the water quality of the Illinois River and Lake Tenkiller. Despite no farmers being named as defendants in the case, poultry companies have attempted to redirect blame and portray the litigation as an attack on agriculture.
“Not one single farmer has been sued by the state, but these corporations continue to hide behind a false narrative, using hardworking farm families as human shields to avoid accountability,” emphasized Drummond. “A thriving poultry industry and clean water can absolutely coexist. What we cannot accept is allowing massive corporations to pollute our waterways without consequence. Oklahoma is simply asking Tyson Foods to conduct its business responsibly and comply with laws—the same laws that protect the health and economic future of all Oklahomans.”
