USDA Lifts PACA Reparation Sanctions on New York Produce Business
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that Do Produce Inc. satisfied a reparation order issued under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA).
The Wantagh, NY, company can continue operating in the produce industry upon applying for and being issued a PACA license, according to a press release. Pantelis Splinis was listed as the officer, director, and major stockholder of the business and may now be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee.
Once a reparation order is fully satisfied and it is confirmed that there are not any outstanding unpaid awards, USDA lifts the employment restrictions of the previously named responsibly connected individuals. USDA also requires any unlicensed company that fully satisfies all unpaid reparation awards to obtain a license if it continues to operate in the industry.
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 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. It's 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.
