A Minnesota cereal company is asking a judge to take a feud with Snoop Dogg outside the courtroom.
Broadus Foods, which rappers Snoop Dogg and Master P own, sued Post Consumer Brands and Walmart earlier this year for a "conspiracy" to tank sales of Snoop Cereal, which Post had agreed to manufacture.
The suit alleges Lakeville-based Post and retailer Walmart hiked the price of Snoop Cereal and "intentionally hindered its sale to the public to force Broadus Foods out of the market."
Calling the allegations "completely false" and "utterly without merit" in recent court filings, Post and Walmart want the dispute taken out of court and into arbitration. That's a confidential proceeding led by a third-party arbitrator who can rule on the case.
A contract with Broadus Foods stipulated any disagreement should go first to mediation and then to arbitration, according to court filings.
"Broadus Foods violated the agreement by filing this suit rather than proceeding in arbitration," according to court documents.
Post agreed in December 2022 to produce and distribute three flavors of Snoop Cereal, which launched last summer to a lukewarm response. The companies were to split profits.
"We were equally disappointed that consumer demand did not meet expectations," Post said in a statement in February.
But Broadus claimed Post "worked with Walmart to ensure that none of the boxes of Snoop cereal would ever appear on store shelves," according to the suit filed in Dakota County District Court.
