AGRICULTURE

Judge Questions ADM Settlement Reserve: U.S. District Judge Milton Shadur, who is deciding on the fairness of Archer-Daniels-Midland Co.’s proposed $25-million settlement of a lawsuit, wants to know if the Decatur, Ill.-based agribusiness company set aside substantially more than that to settle the case. Shadur said he is asking because media reports said ADM may have set aside $40 million to settle the civil class-action suit, which alleges ADM fixed prices for an animal feed supplement. ADM attorneys said the news media reports are inaccurate, that the reserve was lower, but an ADM spokeswoman would not say what was actually reserved. The $25 million would be ADM’s portion of a proposed $45.4-million payment that also involves two Japanese companies. Shadur ordered attorneys for both sides to explore the issue and to report back to him on April 29.