USDA Fines National Beef $32,500

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) – Federal regulators have fined National Beef

Packing Co. a $32,500 civil penalty as part of a consent agreement

stemming from the company’s practices with livestock sellers.

The Agriculture Department’s Grain Inspection, Packers and

Stockyards Administration, or GIPSA as it is more commonly known,

has also issued cease and desist orders to the Kansas City,

Mo.-based company over the allegations.

GIPSA ordered the company to give livestock sellers an accurate

accounting of the cattle purchased and to correct freight charge

deductions. It also ordered the company to tell sellers about data

errors that affect prices paid for cattle, and to stop using an

inaccurate scale for determining livestock carcass weights.