PASCO, Wash. — Easterday Ranches has filed for Chapter 11 protection amid allegations the Eastern Washington cattle supplier bilked Tyson Foods out of $225 million by submitting fake invoices for more than 200,000 cattle that did not exist.

Court documents filed on Monday, Feb. 1, list the 20 largest claims against Easterday Ranches, totaling more than $236 million — including $8.6 million to Segale Properties, a Seattle-based commercial real estate company; $1.08 million to Animal Health International in Sunnyside, Washington; and tens of thousands of dollars to other local farmers, vets and contractors.

No other claim, however, comes close to the $225 million sought in a lawsuit Tyson Foods filed last week in Franklin County Superior Court.

The meat processing giant accused Easterday Ranches, based in Pasco, of collecting money to buy, raise and feed more than 200,000 cattle that would be supplied to a nearby Tyson beef plant. Except for one thing — the cattle, it was later discovered, weren’t real, the company alleges.

Easterday has not responded to messages for comment.

Easterday Ranches is part of the larger Easterday farming operation. The family also grows 25,000 acres of potatoes, onions, grain and forage in the Columbia Basin.

A report in the Spokesman-Review newspaper states the Washington Department of Agriculture will launch a review of the allegations, and how 200,000 nonexistent cattle may have slipped through its inspection process.

The case also casts doubt on plans by Easterday Farms to redevelop the former Lost Valley Farms dairy near Boardman with 28,300 cattle.

In a 2019 interview with the Capital Press, Cody Easterday said the farm plans to invest $15 million in the dairy, including completion of a wastewater treatment system that was never finished under the previous owner.

Lost Valley Farm was shut down in 2018 after racking up more than 200 environmental violations. Opponents are now pushing for a moratorium on so-called “mega-dairies.”

Andrea Cantu-Schomas, a spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Agriculture, said the agency is aware of the lawsuit between Easterday Ranches and Tyson Foods.

For now, ODA continues to review draft permits for the dairy, though Cantu-Schomas said they are in talks with partner agencies, including the Department of Justice, considering recent developments.

“At this time, the Easterday (dairy) draft permit is still under review,” she said. “The state continues to conduct due diligence.”

According to the Tyson lawsuit, farm president Cody Easterday admitted to the scheme, falsifying records and collecting reimbursement from Tyson over a period of several years, which was done to offset more than $200 million in losses incurred in the commodities trading markets.

Tyson Foods is the world’s second-largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef and pork. The company does not own or operate feedlots, but has buyers in beef-producing areas who visit independent feed yards and public auctions to buy animals for its processing plants. That includes one near Pasco, which Easterday Ranches supplied.

Tyson entered into a cattle feeding agreement with Easterday Ranches in 2017. In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Tyson reported that Easterday provided roughly 2% of the company’s beef during the last four fiscal years.

Gary Mickelson, senior director of public relations for Tyson, said the company became aware of fraud during a recent company-led inspection.

“As we disclosed in December, this misappropriation of funds has cost Tyson more than $200 million, which the company is working to recoup,” Mickelson said in an emailed statement. “We are also working with our outside auditor to implement additional financial controls to help prevent or detect this type of activity in the future.”

Mickelson said Tyson is asking for a court-appointed receiver to take control of Easterday Ranches until the situation is resolved.

Tyson claims it has approximately 54,000 real cattle still on Easterday’s feedlots and grow yards.

“Those cattle are of various ages and various weights, most not yet ready for market,” the lawsuit states. “Those cattle require continued feeding, maintenance and other care on a daily basis, or their value will quickly and dramatically deteriorate.”