WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has filed an administrative complaint under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) against Sandia Distributors Inc, according to a USDA press release.

The company, operating from Arizona, allegedly failed to remit net proceeds to four produce growers in the amount of $1,769,070 from May 2014 through May 2015.

Sandia Distributors Inc. will have an opportunity to request a hearing. Should the USDA find that the company committed repeated and flagrant violations, it would be barred from the produce industry for two years. Furthermore, its principals could not be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee for one year and then only with the posting of a USDA-approved surety bond.

In the past three years, the USDA resolved approximately 3,700 PACA claims involving more than $66 million. Their 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.

Agriculture Marketing Service