The Federal Trade Commission has filed a lawsuit against agricultural equipment giant Deere & Company, alleging it holds a monopoly on repair services.

The Federal Trade Commission sued Deere, alleging the tractor maker limits farmers’ ability to repair their own equipment, giving Deere an illegal monopoly on repair services. The FTC’s lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Chicago federal court,

The lawsuit comes after years of the equipment manufacturer locking farmers out of making basic repairs to their equipment.

John Deere’s “unfair” practices raised repair costs for farmers and kept them from being able to make repairs on tractors and other equipment they own, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) alleges in a new lawsuit.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday sued farm equipment maker Deere , alleging it illegally drives up repair costs by forcing farmers to rely on its authorized dealer network.

John Deere's controversial practice that requires farmers to use its dealer network for repairs draws a lawsuit from the Federal Trade Commission