$100K unpaid vegetable bill leads to federal suit

HUNTINGTON -- A Huntington fruit company has been named as a defendant in a breach of contract suit filed in federal court.

Roy Enterprises, which does business as Buck's Fruit Company, and its directors, Carolyn Roy and C. Randell Blatt, were named as defendants in a case filed by Weis-Buy Farms, Inc., of Florida after Buck's Fruit Company, Roy, and Blatt failed to make good on a $116,349.16 bill for vegetables.

Weis-Buy Farms sold Buck's Fruit Company everything from avocados to zucchini as part of contract through the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA), but did not deliver sufficient funds for any of the shipments Weis-Buy Farms sent.

And as icing on the obligatory carrot cake, Buck's Fruit Company, Roy, and Blatt made substantial profit on the resale of the produce bought from Weis-Buy Farms, referred to in the filing as PACA Trust Assets.

Filed by David Amsbary of the Huntington firm of Bailes, Craig & Yon and Miguel Martin-Johnston of the Illinois firm of Keaton & Associates on Sept. 8, the suit states that Roy and Blatt were authorities within Buck's Fruit Company and had the ability to direct sales proceeds to pay its creditors, namely Weis-Buy Farms.

Filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia due to the amount in controversy, jurisdiction over PACA, and the citizenship of the involved parties, the suit states that Weis-Buy Farms is seeking an order to create a common fund to compel the preservation of the PACA Trust Assets, to immediately turn over all the PACA Trust Assets, and a judgment of $116,349.16 plus collection and attorney costs.