46.2—Definitions.
The terms defined in the first section of the Act shall have the same meaning as stated therein. Unless otherwise defined, the following terms whether used in the regulations, in the Act, or in the trade shall be construed as follows:
(a)
Act means the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act, 1930, approved June 10, 1930, and legislation supplementary thereto and amendatory thereof (46 Stat. 531; 7 U.S.C. 499a-499r ).
(c)
Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture of the United States, or any officer or employee of the Department to whom authority has heretofore been delegated, or to whom authority may hereafter be delegated, to act in his stead.
(e)
Deputy Administrator means the Deputy Administrator, Regulatory Programs, of the Consumer and Marketing Service, or any officer or employee of the Service, to whom authority has heretofore lawfully been delegated, or to whom authority may hereafter lawfully be delegated, to act in his stead.
(g)
Director means the Director of the Division or any officer or employee of the Division to whom authority has heretofore lawfully been delegated, or to whom authority may hereafter lawfully be delegated, by the Director to act in his stead.
(h)
In commerce means interstate or foreign commerce as defined in paragraphs (3) and (8) of the first section of the Act.
(i)
Person means any individual, partnership, limited liability company, corporation, association, or separate legal entity.
(j)
Retailer is a dealer engaged in the business of selling any perishable agricultural commodity at retail; Provided, That occasional sales at wholesale shall not be deemed to remove a dealer from the category of retailer if less than 5 percent of annual gross sales is derived from wholesale transactions.
(l)
Licensee means any firm who holds an unrevoked and valid unsus-pended license issued under the Act.
(m)
Dealer means any person engaged in the business of buying or selling in wholesale or jobbing quantities in commerce and includes:
(2)
Retailers, when the invoice cost of all purchases of produce exceeds $230,000 during a calendar year. In computing dollar volume, all purchases of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables are to be counted, without regard to quantity involved in a transaction or whether the transaction was intrastate, interstate or foreign commerce;
(4)
The term “dealer” does not include persons buying produce, other than potatoes, for canning and/or processing within the State where grown, whether or not the canned or processed product is to be shipped in interstate or foreign commerce, unless such product is frozen, or packed in ice, or consists of cherries in brine.
(n)
Broker means any person engaged in the business of negotiating sales and purchases of produce in commerce for or on behalf of the vendor or the purchaser, respectively, except that no person shall be deemed to be a “broker” within the meaning of the Act if such person is an independent agent negotiating sales for or on behalf of the vendor and if the only sales of such commodities negotiated by such person are sales of frozen fruits and vegetables having an invoice value not in excess of $230,000 in any calendar year.
(o)
Shipper means any person operating at shipping point who is engaged in the business of purchasing produce from growers or others and distributing such produce in commerce by resale or other methods, or who handles such produce on joint account with others.
(q)
Growers' agent means any person operating at shipping point who sells or distributes produce in commerce for or on behalf of growers or others and whose operations may include the planting, harvesting, grading, packing, and furnishing containers, supplies, or other services.
(r)
Receiving market commission merchant means any person operating on a receiving market who is engaged in the business of receiving produce in commerce for sale, on commission, for or on behalf of another.
(s)
Joint account transaction means a produce transaction in commerce in which two or more persons participate under a limited joint venture arrangement whereby they agree to share in a prescribed manner the costs, profits, or losses resulting from such transaction.
(t)
Produce means any perishable agricultural commodity, as defined in paragraph (4) of the first section of the Act.
(u)
Fresh fruits and fresh vegetables include all produce in fresh form generally considered as perishable fruits and vegetables, whether or not packed in ice or held in common or cold storage, but does not include those perishable fruits and vegetables which have been manufactured into articles of food of a different kind or character. The effects of the following operations shall not be considered as changing a commodity into a food of a different kind or character: Water, steam, or oil blanching, battering, coating, chopping, color adding, curing, cutting, dicing, drying for the removal of surface moisture; fumigating, gassing, heating for insect control, ripening and coloring; removal of seed, pits, stems, calyx, husk, pods rind, skin, peel, et cetera; polishing, precooling, refrigerating, shredding, slicing, trimming, washing with or without chemicals; waxing, adding of sugar or other sweetening agents; adding ascorbic acid or other agents to retard oxidation; mixing of several kinds of sliced, chopped, or diced fruit or vegetables for packaging in any type of containers; or comparable methods of preparation.
(v)
Frozen fruits and vegetables include all produce defined in paragraph (u) of this section when such produce is in frozen form.
(w)
Cherries in brine means cherries packed in an aqueous solution containing sulphur dioxide or other bleaching agent of sufficient strength to preserve the product, with or without the addition of hardening agents.
(x)
Wholesale or jobbing quantities, as used in paragraph (6) of the first section of the Act, means aggregate quantities of all types of produce totaling one ton (2,000 pounds) or more in weight in any day shipped, received, or contracted to be shipped or received.
(1)
Consignments, to account by rendering a true and correct statement showing the date of receipt and date of final sale, the quantities sold at each price, or other disposition of the produce, and the proper, usual or specifically agreed upon selling charges and expenses properly incurred or agreed to in the handling thereof, plus any other information required by § 46.29 ;
(2)
Joint account transactions, to account by rendering a true and correct statement showing the date of receipt and date of final sale, the quantities sold at each price or other disposition of produce, the joint account cost of the produce, and the expenses properly incurred or other charges specifically agreed to in the handling thereof, plus any other information required by § 46.29 ;
(3)
Buying brokerage transactions, to account by rendering a true and correct itemized statement showing the cost of the produce, the expenses properly incurred, and the amount of brokerage charged.
(z)
Account promptly, except when otherwise specifically agreed upon by the parties, means rendering to the principal a true and correct accounting:
(2)
In connection with consignment or joint account transactions, within 10 days after the date of final sale with respect to each shipment, or within 20 days from the date the goods are accepted at destination, whichever comes first: Provided, That whenever a grower's agent or shipper distributes individual lots of produce for or on behalf of others, accounting to the principal shall be made within 30 days after receipt of the shipment from the principal for sale or within 5 days after the date the agent receives payment for the goods, whichever comes first. Whenever a grower's agent or shipper harvests, packs, or distributes entire crops or multiple lots therefrom for or on behalf of others, an accounting on the initial shipment shall be rendered within 30 days after receipt of the goods for sale. Accountings for subsequent shipments shall be made at 10-day intervals from the date of the accounting for the initial shipment and a final accounting for the season shall be made to each principal within 30 days from the date the agent receives the last shipment for the season from that principal: Provided further, That whenever the marketing agreement between a principal and agent includes a provision for storage of goods prior to sale, the agent shall render accountings of inventory and expenses incurred to date at 30-day intervals from the date the goods are received by the agent until sales from storage begin, And Provided further, That nothing in the regulations in this part shall prohibit cooperative associations from accounting to their members on the basis of seasonal pools or other arrangements provided by their regulations or bylaws; and
(3)
In connection with a consignment or joint account transaction, within 10 days after the date of receipt of payment of a carrier claim filed.
(aa)
Full payment promptly is the term used in the Act in specifying the period of time for making payment without committing a violation of the Act. “Full payment promptly,” for the purpose of determining violations of the Act, means:
(1)
Payment of net proceeds for produce received on consignment or the pro-rata share of the net profits for produce received on joint account, within 10 days after the date of final sale with respect to each shipment, or within 20 days from the date the goods are accepted at destination, whichever comes first;
(2)
Payment by growers, growers' agents, or shippers of deficits on consignments or joint account transactions, within 10 days after the day on which the accounting is received;
(3)
Payment of the purchase price, brokerage, and other expenses to buying brokers who pay for the produce, within 10 days after the day on which the broker's invoice is received by the buyer;
(4)
Payment of brokerage earned and other expenses in connection with produce purchased or sold, within 10 days after the day on which the broker's invoice is received by the principal;
(5)
Payment for produce purchased by a buyer, within 10 days after the day on which the produce is accepted;
(6)
Payment to growers, growers' agents, or shippers by terminal market agents or brokers, who are selling for the account of a grower, growers' agent, or shipper and are authorized to collect from the buyer or receiver, within 5 days after the agent or broker receives payment from the buyer or receiver;
(7)
Payment to the principal, within 10 days after receipt, of net proceeds realized from a carrier claim in connection with a consignment transaction or, in connection with a joint account transaction, payment to the joint account partners of their share of the joint account net proceeds realized from a carrier claim;
(8)
Payment by growers agents or shippers who distribute individual lots of produce for or on behalf of others, within 30 days after receipt of the goods from the principal for sale or within 5 days after the date the agent receives payment for the goods, whichever comes first;
(9)
Whenever a grower's agent or shipper harvests, packs, or distributes entire crops or multiple lots therefrom for or on behalf of others, payment for the initial shipment shall be made within 30 days after receipt of the goods for sale or within 5 days after the date the agent receives payment for the goods, whichever comes first. Payment for subsequent shipments shall be made at 10-day intervals from the date of the accounting for the initial shipment or within 5 days after the date the agent receives payment for the goods, whichever comes first, and final payment for the seasons shall be made to each principal within 30 days from the date the agent receives the last shipment for the season from that principal;
(10)
When contracts are based on terms other than those described in these regulations, payment is due the supplier-seller within 20 days from the date of acceptance of the shipment under the terms of the contract and § 46.2(dd).
(11)
Parties who elect to use different times of payment than those set forth in paragraphs (aa) (1) through (10) of this section must reduce their agreement to writing before entering into the transaction and maintain a copy of the agreement in their records. If they have so agreed, then payment within the agreed upon time shall constitute “full payment promptly”: Provided, That the party claiming the existence of such an agreement for time of payment shall have the burden of proving it.
Nothing in the regulations in this part shall limit the seller's privilege of shipping under a closed or advise bill of lading or other arrangement requiring cash on delivery unless there has been express prior agreement to the contrary between the parties; or prohibit cooperative associations from settling with their members on the basis of seasonal pools or other arrangements provided by their regulations or bylaws. If there is a dispute concerning a transaction, the foregoing time periods for prompt payment apply only to payment of the undisputed amount.
(bb)
Reject without reasonable cause means in connection with purchases, consignments, or joint account transactions: (1) Refusing or failing without legal justification to accept produce within a reasonable time; (2) advising the seller, shipper, or his agent that produce, complying with contract, will not be accepted; (3) indicating an intention not to accept produce through an act or failure to act inconsistent with the contract; or (4) any rejection following an act of acceptance.
(1)
For frozen fruits and vegetables with respect to rail shipments, 48 hours after notice of arrival and the produce is made accessible for inspection, and with respect to truck shipments, not to exceed 12 hours after the receiver or a responsible representative is given notice of arrival and the produce is made accessible for inspection;
(2)
For fresh fruits and vegetables with respect to rail shipments, not to exceed 24 hours after notice of arrival and the car has been placed in a location where the produce is made accessible for inspection; and with respect to truck shipments, not to exceed 8 hours after the receiver or a responsible representative is given notice of arrival and the produce is made accessible for inspection; and, with respect to boat shipments, not to exceed 24 hours after the produce is unloaded and made accessible for inspection and the receiver is given notice thereof;
(3)
If, within the applicable period, the receiver cannot make a thorough inspection due to adverse weather condition or applies for but cannot obtain Federal inspection before the end of this period, and so notifies the consignor within the applicable period, the period shall be extended until weather conditions permit inspection or until Federal inspection is made, as the case may be, plus two hours after either an oral or written report of the results of such inspection is made available to the receiver; and
(4)
In computing the time periods specified above, (i) for shipments arriving on non-work days or after the close of regular business hours on work days when a representative of the receiver having authority to reject shipments is not present, non-working hours preceding the start of regular business hours on the next working day shall not be included; and (ii) for shipments arriving during regular business hours when a representative of the receiver having authority to reject shipments customarily is present, the period shall run without interruption except that, for shipments arriving less than two hours before the close of regular business hours, the unexpired balance of the time period shall be extended and run from the start of regular business hours on the next working day.
(1)
Any act by the consignee signifying acceptance of the shipment, including diversion or unloading;
(2)
Any act by the consignee which is inconsistent with the consignor's ownership, but if such act is wrongful against the consignor it is acceptance only if ratified by him; or
(3)
Failure of the consignee to give notice of rejection to the consignor within a reasonable time as defined in paragraph (cc) of this section: Provided, That acceptance shall not affect any claim for damages because of failure of the produce to meet the terms of the contract.
(ee)
Employ and employment mean any affiliation of any person with the business operations of a licensee, with or without compensation, including ownership or self-employment.
(ff)
Responsibly connected means affiliation as individual owner, partner in a partnership, member, manager, officer, director or holder of more than a 10 percent ownership stake in a limited liability company, or officer, director or holder of more than 10 percent of the outstanding stock of a corporation or association.
(gg)
Branch or additional business facility, as used in section 3(b) of the Act, means an office or outlet in a location other than that of the principal or main office of a firm, out of which or through which the firm purchases, sells, negotiates contracts, solicits, or handles consignments, or otherwise contracts in perishable agricultural commodities including seasonal, part-time and full-time operations. As used in this paragraph, “branch or additional business facility” includes, but is not limited to, the following:
(1)
Jobbers, wholesalers, distributors—each location through which commodities are bought, sold or otherwise contracted;
(2)
Retailers—each outlet through which retail sales of commodities are made and each office which purchases commodities;
(3)
Trucker/dealer—a truck is a “branch” office if the driver is authorized to buy, sell or otherwise contract for commodities on behalf of the firm;
(4)
Shippers—on-the-ground representatives making purchases, sales or otherwise contracting for commodities;
(5)
Brokers—each office conducting contract negotiations including on-the-ground representatives negotiating contracts for commodities;
(6)
Processors—each location at which commodities are purchased, sold or contracted to be purchased or sold;
(7)
Cooperatives—each operation away from the main office that has responsibility to account for proceeds received from sales of commodities; or
(8)
Seasonal/part-time operations—any facility with on-the-ground representatives making purchases, sales, or otherwise contracting for commodities.
(hh)
Good faith means honesty in fact and the observance of reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing in the trade. The principle of good faith requires that a party to a transaction disclose in writing the existence of any collateral fees and expenses to all other parties to the transaction where the collateral fees and expenses affect a material term of the agreement.
(ii)
Grocery wholesaler is a dealer primarily engaged in the full-line wholesale distribution and resale of grocery and related nonfood items (such as perishable agricultural commodities, dry groceries, general merchandise, meat, poultry, and seafood, and health and beauty care items) to retailers. This term does not include persons primarily engaged in the wholesale distribution and resale of perishable agricultural commodities rather than other grocery and related nonfood items. Specifically, for an entity to be considered a grocery wholesaler, 50 percent or more of its annual gross sales must be from the full-line distribution and resale of grocery and related nonfood items, and it cannot have more than 50 percent of its sales in perishable agricultural commodities. “Full line” means that an entity must be supplying the retailer with a wide range of products such as the grocery and related nonfood items specified.