WASHINGTON, Dec. 19, 2025 – On Sept. 10, 2025, PDLA Inc, operating out of Commerce, Calif. and doing business as Primo Growers & Distributors, posted a $100,000 surety bond to employ Miriam Marquez, as required by the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA). Ms. Marquez was an officer of LMS Distributors LLC in Los Angeles, Calif. when the company failed to pay multiple reparation awards issued against it.
Pursuant to the PACA, any PACA licensee wishing to employ an individual who failed to pay a reparation award or has been subject to a USDA disciplinary action must post a USDA-approved surety bond. USDA will hold the bond to provide assurance the licensee will conduct business according to the PACA and will pay any reparation awards that may be issued against it. If, at the end of a four-year period, there are no reparation complaints pending against the licensee, the bond can be terminated; if any reparations complaints are substantiated, they can be satisfied by the bond.
For further information, contact the PACA Investigative Enforcement Branch, at (202) 720-6873 or PACAInvestigations@usda.gov.
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The PACA Division, which is in the Fair Trade Practices Program in the Agricultural Marketing Service, 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.