Nadine Wilkins (202)720-8998Nadine.wilkins@ams.usda.gov
WASHINGTON, Nov. 8, 2012 – Under regulations of the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA), S & H Packing Sales Co., operating in Los Angeles, Calif., posted a $60,000 surety bond.
The surety bond was posted with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to employ Anthony Moreno, previously named in PACA actions.
Moreno was an officer of Moreno Brothers Two Inc., Woodland Hills, Calif., a company that failed to pay reparation awards issued against it under the PACA.
Any PACA licensee wishing to employ persons 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 $60,000 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 requires that all interstate traders in fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables be USDA-licensed. The PACA establishes a code of good business conduct for the produce industry. USDA is authorized to suspend or revoke a trader’s license for violating the act.
In the past three years, USDA resolved approximately 5,000 claims filed under the PACA involving almost $96 million. This is just one more way the USDA continues to support the fruit and vegetable industry.
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