Oklahoma Attorney General, Governor Clash Over $100M Tyson Foods Pollution Case
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond is seeking to prevent Governor Kevin Stitt from intervening in a long-running lawsuit against Tyson Foods and other poultry companies accused of polluting the Illinois River Watershed, a dispute highlighting tensions between the state’s top two Republicans.
The lawsuit, originally filed in 2005, alleges that major poultry companies polluted the watershed with phosphorus from chicken waste used as fertilizer. A U.S. District Judge ruled in favor of Oklahoma in 2023, and Drummond is now pushing for penalties exceeding $100 million from companies including Tyson, Cargill, and Simmons Foods. Governor Stitt, however, recently requested the judge force both sides to “renew their settlement efforts,” a move Drummond argues is a delay tactic.
“This is categorically a delay tactic and I do not believe the court will buy it,” said Drew Edmondson, the former Oklahoma attorney general who initially filed the case. Stitt has publicly criticized the lawsuit and signed legislation in 2024 offering some legal protections to poultry companies. He also fired his energy and environment secretary after the official supported Drummond and environmental groups in court, citing concerns for Oklahoma farmers and landowners. The ongoing pollution impacts water quality and contributes to significant ecological damage in the region. Oklahoma ranks among the top ten states for chicken production, raising 215 million broiler chickens valued at over $1 billion in 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Drummond filed a motion today accusing Stitt of misinterpreting a recent Oklahoma Supreme Court decision to justify his intervention and stated that settlement talks between the state and the poultry companies had recently broken down. The dispute comes as Stitt nears the end of his second term and Drummond prepares to run for governor in 2026. Further court proceedings are expected as the judge considers Drummond’s motion to keep Stitt out of the case and move toward a final ruling on damages; you can learn more about the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office here.
