WASHINGTON, DC - Arrow Farms of New York has paid a $15,000 civil penalty for slow pay violations relating to the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA).
To settle a complaint, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Arrow Farms of New York entered into a consent decision in which Arrow Farms of New York agreed to pay a $15,000 civil penalty for failing to make full payment promptly to four sellers in the amount of $69,719, according to a recent USDA press release.
The company’s failure to pay all of the undisputed produce debt described in the complaint until January 2016 constitutes slow payment under PACA. The company satisfied the terms of the consent decision and order on May 11, 2016, and, as a result, the finding of violations has been permanently abated.
USDA is required to publish the finding that a business has committed willful, repeated, and flagrant violations of PACA as well as impose restrictions against those principals determined to be responsibly connected to the business during the violation period. Those individuals, including sole proprietors, partners, members, managers, officers, directors, or major stockholders may not be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee without USDA-approval.
In the past three years, the USDA resolved approximately 3,700 PACA claims involving more than $66 million. Its experts also assisted more than 7,100 callers with issues valued at approximately $100 million. These are just two examples of how the USDA continues to support the fruit and vegetable industry.
