CHICAGO (AP) — The U.S. government is investigating price-fixing charges against the country's biggest poultry companies.

The Department of Justice tipped its hand last week when it requested a temporary halt to discovery proceedings in a 2016 class-action lawsuit filed by food service distributor Maplevale Farms.

Falconer, New York-based Maplevale Farms accuses Tyson Foods Inc., Perdue Farms Inc., Pilgrim's Pride and others of conspiring to fix poultry prices between 2008 and 2016. The suit claims the companies shared information through a third-party data firm and restricted supply by destro...