Get debriefed on skirmishes among PACA trust creditors, disarming non-dischargeability possibly before SCOTUS, and factoring companies – friend, foe or frenemy? In this one-hour webinar, moderator Bryan Nickerson, Manager, Trade Practices at Western Growers, and PACA attorney June Monroe from Fennemore, LLP, take you through a short basic training and a full debriefing on recent PACA court…
In the realm of disputed contracts for fresh and frozen produce, the WG Trade Practices department plays a crucial role in representing shipper members. Frequently called upon to provide written justifications for suppliers based on specific sections of the PACA regulation, it is important to recognize that while these regulations define terms and outline responsibilities within the supply…
The saying, “Timing is everything,” still holds true when it comes to identifying and pursuing a claim against a buyer. The timing to initiate a potential claim is not up for debate; it should be when you first become aware of a problem with a shipment. Whether it is a potential truck claim or a dispute with a customer, the situation needs to be addressed immediately and documented. You can…
For those WG shipper members that export into Canada, membership with the Dispute Resolution Corporation (DRC) is a requirement. Guest columnist and DRC’s Director of Trading Assistance, Jaime Bustamante, provides his insights on the specific requirements to demonstrate when a commodity fails to meet contract terms at destination in Canada. "DRC Trading Assistance staff continue to see the…
If you import or export product, it is your responsibility as the importer or exporter to properly classify your product. Customs classifications are complex and are used to determine applicable duties, trade statistics, and other government agency requirements. The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) sets out the tariff rates and statistical categories for all merchandise imported into…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is reminding buyers and sellers of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables subject to the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) of the actions that must be taken for a seller to preserve their PACA trust rights in Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) or electronic invoicing (collectively, ...
Today’s transportation market continues to influence how shippers go to market with their freight. During the last quarter of 2022, it is likely there will be some normal cyclical uptick in the spot market. This will be caused by some reduction in active capacity as drivers take time off for the end of year holidays. ...
Creating a strong company credit culture provides a universal way of doing business with the proper checks and balances in place from top to bottom within an organization. Making decisions about credit is just as important as other critical initiatives that make your company successful. After all, selling produce to companies who will pay for the ...
As covered in last month’s Part One blog, attorney Bart Botta laid out some of the industry’s best practices in ensuring shippers get paid on fulfilled sales transactions. Now that your sales documents are in order, and you’ve properly vetted the new customer, everything should be set for selling to this customer. Once your sales ...
As a benefit to Regular shipping members of Western Growers (WG), the Trade Practices & Commodity Services department has assisted members in consultation on sales contracts since 1966. This guidance and education of rights and remedies available to sellers of perishable commodities has been invaluable. As a direct result of this obtainable service, several million ...
The advisory warning issued last week about an E. coli outbreak in romaine lettuce has triggered numerous questions regarding the legal ramifications between seller and buyer with any affected romaine that was already received, or in-transit, or being prepared for shipment. The allocation of the risk of loss depends on the terms of sale. For ...
The term load and count is the notation on a bill of lading indicating that the contents (number of cartons or sacks) inside the refrigerated trailer were loaded and counted by both the shipper and trucker. If you are not allowing the carrier the opportunity to verify your count, your operation could be referred to ...
When it comes to in-transit temperatures, it’s not always black and white to definitively establish if the shipment was affected by improper in-transit temperature maintenance. When the transportation record (temperature recorder/Carrier Download) clearly documents temperature abuse for a sustained period of time, the shipper should have no problem enforcing its FOB contract. However, what…
With the Advisory from U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Center for Disease Control announcements on November 20th and November 26th, the Trade Practices Department of Western Growers has fielded many calls from shippers on sales contract implications, rights, responsibilities and payment of fulfilled shipments. It is clear that this outbreak has triggered numerous questions ...
Are you prepared when there are unexpected shortfalls of available produce you have contracted and agreed to ship to your customer? Whether it is a short-term ad commitment or an extended vendor agreement for a routine quantity of produce to be shipped, it is important to know your obligations and, more importantly, how you and ...
The content for this blog was compiled through the cooperation of the Canadian Produce Marketing Association (CPMA). The mission of CPMA is to enhance the market and facilitate trade of fresh fruits and vegetables for members. Western Growers has worked closely with CPMA as a trusted partner for many years. If you are a member ...
Along with a New Year comes a crucial time of the year to be reminded of leafy greens (iceberg and romaine) exposure to possible freeze conditions in the field. Just last week, USDA Market News reported start of daily harvest curtailed by ice in the fields in the desert southwest lettuce growing regions. The low ...
By only taking a quick cursory review of the USDA inspection, a shipper may miss the full story as to whether there was an actual breach of contract (failure to meet good delivery). You must remember that a USDA certificate may in most circumstances reflect that the commodity failed to grade U.S. No. 1, but ...
The Romaine Task Force Subcommittee working to refine language associated with voluntary regional labeling of romaine products has updated their Q & A document to no longer require suppliers and distributors to include the harvest date on the labels of romaine products, as long as a date of harvest can be determined using existing dates ...
Here at Western Growers Trade Practices, we encourage shippers to embrace a culture of best practices by putting in place every day procedures and protocols. As part of that mantra, we preach to document, document, and document. As a shipper, we know you strive every day to fulfill your customers’ expectations, on every sales transaction. ...