The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced sanctions against five companies in California and Pennsylvania for alleged Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) violations in the month of February.

Vantaggio Farming Corporation, out of Carlsbad, California, failed to make full payment to two sellers for multiple lots of produce, according to the USDA. The department imposed a civil penalty of $40,000 and the case was dismissed.

Los Angeles-based Parimar Inc., Hust Produce Inc., and Frozen Food Development Inc., all operating in Pennsylvania, were also fined for failure to meet contractual obligations to produce sellers. 

The department said all three companies failed to pay the reparation awards issued by USDA. As a result, they are restricted from operating in the industry.

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Northeast Tomato Distributors Inc. is also accused of failure to make payments to five produce sellers for an amount of $219,173 from August 2022 through November 2022, prompting USDA to file an administrative complaint.

The company will have the 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 as a licensee for three years, or two years with the posting of a USDA-approved surety bond.

Meanwhile, the USDA announced that Superior Growers LLC, located in Las Vegas, Nevada, had satisfied a PACA reparations order of $16,841 for unpaid produce transactions. The company will be able to reapply for licensing to operate in the produce industry.

The PACA Division regulates fair trading practices of produce businesses, including buyers, sellers, commission merchants, dealers and brokers within the fruit and vegetable industry.