Public Affairs
WASHINGTON, March 4, 2021 –The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) entered into a stipulation agreement with Kingdom Livestock Transport, LLC (Kingdom) of Mohnton, Pa., on Feb. 1, 2021, for violations of the Packers and Stockyards (P&S) Act. Under the terms of the stipulation agreement, Kingdom waived its rights to a hearing and paid a penalty of $1,600.
An investigation by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) revealed that between May 5 and July 28, 2020, in 18 transactions, Kingdom failed to pay timely for 5,727 head of livestock totaling $995,866. Payments ranged from one to five days late.
The P&S Act requires subject entities to issue the full payment for livestock by the close of the first business day following purchase and transfer of possession. Failure to timely pay for livestock purchases and failure to issue the full payment for purchases is an unfair trade practice and a violation of the P&S Act.
The P&S Act authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to assess civil penalties up to $29,270 per violation against any person after the notice and opportunity for hearing on the record. USDA may offer alleged violators the option of waiving their right to a hearing and enter into a stipulation agreement to quickly resolve alleged violations.
The P&S Act is a fair trade practice and payment protection law that promotes fair and competitive marketing environments for the livestock, meat and poultry industries.
For further information about the Packers and Stockyards Act, contact Jeana Harbison, Packers and Stockyards Division, at (202) 720-7051, or by email at Jeana.M.Harbison@usda.gov.
#
Get the latest Agricultural Marketing Service news at www.ams.usda.gov/news or follow us on Twitter
@USDA_AMS. You can also read about us on the USDA blog.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender