Washington, DC
February 4, 2009
The U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s (USDA)
Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) announced today that
Gerard Seed Company, a seed company operating out of Washington,
North Carolina, has paid $2,100 to settle alleged violations of
the Federal Seed Act. The company settled the case in agreement
with AMS officials. The company neither admitted nor denied the
charges brought against them.
This settlement resolves a case which involved four shipments of
oat seed sent to Georgia. The alleged violations, while not the
same for all shipments, were as follows:
- false labeling in regard
to germination;
- failure to test for germination;
- false labeling in regard to noxious-weed seed; and
- failure to label the shippers name and address or the
shippers code
AMS administers the Federal
Seed Act with the assistance of state seed officials. The
investigation was completed through the joint efforts of AMS and
seed regulatory officials in Georgia. The Federal Seed Act is a
truth-in-labeling law designed to protect farmers and consumers
who buy seed. |
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