Release No.: 245-14

Contact:

Nadine Wilkins (202) 720-8998

WASHINGTON, Jan. 16, 2015 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has imposed sanctions on four produce businesses for failure to pay reparation awards issued under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA).

The following businesses and individuals are currently restricted from operating in the produce industry:

--Joseph Aiello & Sons Inc., operating out of Albany, N.Y., for failing to pay a $7,747 award in favor of a Minnesota seller. As of the issuance date of the reparation order, Joseph J. Aiello Jr. was listed as the officer, director, and major stockholder of the business.

--Vegfruitworld Corp., operating out of Opa Locka, Fla., for failing to pay a $5,184 award in favor of a Georgia seller. As of the issuance date of the reparation order, Hugo T. Coral, Jose J. Quezada, and Levy P. Zapata were listed as the officers, directors, and/or major stockholders of the business.

--Nico Mexi Foods Inc., operating out of Chicago, Ill., for failing to pay a $7,547 award in favor of an Illinois seller. As of the issuance date of the reparation order, Nicolas Ibarra was listed as the officer, director, and major stockholder of the business.

--Campesinos International Trading Inc., operating out of Ventura, Calif., for failing to pay a $16,040 award in favor of a California seller. As of the issuance date of the reparation order, Arturo Hernandez, La Esperanza Farms Inc., and Carlos Tapia were listed as the officers, directors, and/or major stockholder of the business.

PACA provides an administrative forum to handle disputes involving produce transactions; this may result in a reparation order being issued that requires damages to be paid by those not meeting their contractual obligations in buying and selling fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables. USDA is required to suspend the license or impose sanctions on an unlicensed business that fails to pay PACA reparations awarded against it as well as impose restrictions against those principals determined to be responsibly connected to the business when the order is issued. 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.

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), PACA Division, regulates fair trading practices of produce businesses operating subject to PACA, which includes buyers, sellers, commission merchants, dealers, and brokers within the fruit and vegetable industry. All oversight of actions related to PACA are conducted by AMS, an agency within USDA.

In the past three years, USDA resolved approximately 4,600 claims filed under PACA involving more than $87 million. This is just one more way USDA continues to support the fruit and vegetable industry.

For more information, contact John Koller, Chief, Dispute Resolution Branch at (202) 720-2890, by fax at (202) 690-2815, or by email at PACAdispute@ams.usda.gov regarding this matter.