Tyson points out the upsides: steady income, reliable markets and easier access to bank loans. Tyson would pay premiums for beef quality, and discounts for deficiencies. But it is risky when contracting with a company like Tyson, because Tyson's market heft can drive the price of cattle down by eliminating cash competition. According to court documents in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Eastern Washington, Farmland Reserve was awarded the winning bid of $209 million for the Easterday assets. And ranchers need two things: One is an awful lot of cattle, and the other is a stockbroker. That's because while meatpackers like Tyson were buying up all the brands and slaughterhouses, they eliminated his ability to shop around. They also say that Easterday may have had a gambling problem. Easterday alleges Tyson never paid for the use of his name and likeness as part of a joint venture that involved the marketing and selling of premium beef from his ranch. Cody Easterday, Gale's son, confessed to one of the largest farming swindles in history. "It's very uncomfortable." Plus, he owed 4% interest on that money. Back in April, Mesa, Washington, rancher Easterday pleaded guilty to wire fraud for defrauding Tyson Foods and another unnamed company $244 million in costs for buying and feeding hundreds of. In a brightly colored dormitory there one day, he described through a translator how, in early spring, workers begin at 3 in the morning, ground lit by headlamps, to race the rising sun while picking asparagus. In 2009, Tyson and Easterday discussed the possibility of increasing capacity at his feedlots. Easterday Sentencing Delayed For Third Time | AgWeb BEFORE THE MATTER OF THE NONEXISTENT CATTLE, Easterday was a name of distinction. Federal State of Saarland, Saarbrcken. This while the consumer price of beef soared higher than ever. "Beginning in 2010, Tyson changed its business model in the Pacific Northwest to no longer explicitly 'own' the cattle," the lawsuit said. A Washington man pleaded guilty today to defrauding Tyson Foods Inc. (Tyson) and another company (Company 1) out of more than $244 million by charging them under various agreements for the purported costs of purchasing and feeding hundreds of thousands of cattle that did not actually exist. The Easterday Farms fresh onion facility at on North 1st Avenue in downtown Pasco. Such behemoths are the heirs apparent to more than just the Easterdays' lost fortunes. Over the farm's last year, the Easterdays secured $2.6 million in pandemic-related Paycheck Protection Program relief, the Tri-City Herald, a local paper, reported. "You don't get paid, you move on," said Brad Curtis, whose farm was owed $112,000 for feed. And cattle change hands three or four times in their lifespan. Conjecture in the metal shops and on ranches ran the gamut from illness to injury to suicide. When Easterday filed for bankruptcy, it owed $47,000 and $454,000, respectively, to two farm labor contractors who supplied such workers. The civil action comes as the 49-year-old Easterday pleaded guilty March 31in federal court of defrauding Tysonof more than $244 million in what prosecutors say was a scheme to cover his company's losses in commodities trading, the Spokane Spokesman-Review reported. Working with him and his father was easy to enjoy, Gamino said.