Release No.: 080-17
WASHINGTON, May 23, 2017 – Under regulations of the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA), Dole Fresh Vegetables Inc., operating out of Monterey, Calif., posted a $275,000 surety bond.
The surety bond was posted with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to employ Joseph Esquivel, previously named in a PACA action.
Joseph Esquivel was an officer of Chieftain Harvesting Inc., Salinas, Calif., which was found to have committed repeated and flagrant violations of Section 2 of the PACA.
Any PACA licensee wishing to employ individuals who have failed to pay a reparation award, or have been subject to a USDA disciplinary action, must post a USDA-approved surety bond.
USDA will hold the $275,000 bond for four years, providing assurance to the industry that the company will be able to pay for produce purchased and to conduct its business according to PACA rules.
The PACA Division, which is part of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), regulates fair trading practices of produce businesses that are operating subject to the PACA, including buyers, sellers, commission merchants, dealers and brokers within the fruit and vegetable industry.
In the past three years, USDA resolved approximately 3,500 PACA claims involving more than $58 million. Our experts also assisted more than 8,000 callers with issues valued at approximately $140 million. These are just two examples of how USDA continues to support the fruit and vegetable industry.
For further information, contact Josephine E. Jenkins, Chief, Investigative Enforcement Branch, at (202) 720-6873, or by email at PACAInvestigations@ams.usda.gov.
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