Release No.: 054-19
WASHINGTON, May 6, 2019 – As part of its commitment to ensuring fair and competitive markets for the livestock, meat and poultry industries, on April 26, 2019, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) reached a consent decision with R&W Farms LLC, Wanda Thompson and Rickey G. Thompson (R&W Farms) of Pitkin, La., for violations of the Packers and Stockyards (P&S) Act.
The consent decision suspends and prohibits R&W Farms, operating individually or through any corporate or other device, from registering under the P&S Act and buying and selling livestock through April 26, 2026. Under the terms of the consent decision, R&W Farms can apply to AMS, however, to have the suspension terminated after four years if it can show that the unpaid livestock sellers identified in the Complaint have been paid in full.
An investigation by AMS revealed R&W Farms, while operating as a dealer buying and selling livestock, failed to pay $1,408,703 for livestock purchases from December 2015 to October 2017. Additionally, R & W Farms issued eight insufficient funds checks to livestock sellers totaling $544,533.
Dealers must maintain sufficient funds on deposit and available in the account upon which checks are drawn. Failure to pay for livestock and any delay in the market’s normal period for collecting payment caused by a dealer is an unfair or deceptive practice and is a violation of the P&S Act.
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 Stuart Frank, Director, Packers and Stockyards Division, Fair Trade Practices Program, at (515) 323-2586, or by email at Stuart.Frank@usda.gov.
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