Harvest Sherwood Food Distributors filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on May 5, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas.

The Michigan-based food distributor — which had annual revenue of about $4 billion in 2024 — reported liabilities between $323.5 million to $558.5 million.

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The bankruptcy filing followed the company’s shutdown of operations on April 21, resulting in the layoff of approximately 1,500 employees. According to FreightWaves, the filing is part of a joint Chapter 11 case involving 12 affiliated companies, including SFD Transportation and Harvest Meat.

According to TheStreet, a significant factor in the bankruptcy was a dispute with Sprouts Farmers Market, one of Harvest Sherwood’s largest customers. In February, Sprouts “abruptly” ceased purchasing tray-pack chicken from the distributor, leaving Harvest Sherwood with $25 million in unsold inventory. Harvest Sherwood has filed a lawsuit against Sprouts, seeking to recover approximately $42 million in withheld payments.

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FreightWaves also reported that the largest creditors in the joint filing include Burgord Capital ($35 million), National Beef Packaging ($15.5 million) and Tyson Foods ($13 million).

The court scheduled a hearing for May 9 to address first-day motions and discuss the proposed joint administration of the bankruptcy cases.

To read more about the filing involving Harvest Sherwood Food Distributors, click here.