A produce wholesaler once based at the Atlanta State Farmers Market in Forest Park has been barred from the industry until March 13, 2027, after federal regulators determined it failed to pay nearly $1.9 million owed to 20 produce sellers over the course of a year. Sunbelt Produce Distributors Inc. can no longer buy, sell, or even work in the produce trade until it applies for and receives a new federal license, and only after that date passes.
According to AndNowUKnow, the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that Sunbelt failed to make prompt payment to the 20 sellers between February 2023 and February 2024, totaling $1,922,775 in unpaid produce. The company purchased, received, and accepted produce in interstate and foreign commerce, putting it squarely under USDA oversight, and the agency is required by law to publish findings of violations it deems willful, repeated, and flagrant. The sanctions fall under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act, a federal law enacted by Congress in June 1930 specifically to protect produce sellers from non-payment, according to the National Agricultural Law Center. Because perishable goods rot quickly, the law was designed to guarantee swift financial protections for growers who otherwise have little recourse once a shipment leaves the farm.
A Company Already on the USDA's Radar
This was not Sunbelt's first brush with federal produce regulators. The station's earlier reporting on the industry noted that in July 2024, the USDA separately restricted Sunbelt from operating after the company failed to pay an $85,303 reparation award owed to a Wisconsin produce vendor, per The Packer. That reparation order, an administrative judgment issued when a buyer fails to honor a produce contract, preceded the later USDA sanctions against the company.
A PACERMonitor docket identifies a Mas & Fils Jardiniers Ltée case involving Sunbelt, with a 2023 docket number, according to PacerMonitor. PACA statutory trusts give produce sellers top-priority claims on a buyer's assets when a company runs into financial trouble.
Bankruptcy Trustee Alleges Improper Transfers
The financial unraveling continued into 2025. The materials cited here do not establish whether a bankruptcy complaint was filed against Syme or what allegations it contained.
Under federal PACA rules, principals may be restricted for two years or for one year with a USDA-approved surety bond, the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service has said. Syme, identified as Sunbelt's principal, was ruled ineligible to be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee until March 13, 2026, and can only return to the industry after that date with an approved surety bond in place. Sunbelt itself must also post a USDA-approved surety bond and apply for and receive a new PACA license before it can resume operating after March 13, 2027.
Sunbelt's Fleet Grounded
Sunbelt's freight logistics operation is not addressed in the materials cited here, so its motor-carrier status cannot be determined from them.
Sunbelt's home base at the Atlanta State Farmers Market placed it inside one of the Southeast's most important agricultural hubs. The 155-acre Forest Park complex is recognized as the primary wholesale produce distribution center for the region, according to Come Home To Clayton, supplying grocery chains, restaurants, and regional distributors well beyond Georgia's borders. A collapse at that scale, in that location, means growers across multiple states likely felt the fallout from Sunbelt's unpaid invoices.
A Small Piece of a Larger Enforcement Push
Sunbelt's case is one entry in a much larger federal effort to police the produce trade. PACA enforcement staff handled more than 2,660 produce cases valued at $127.7 million over a three-year period, according to USDA Agricultural Marketing Service reporting dated October 23, 2024. The agency says its mission is to protect the rights of both produce sellers and buyers in the marketplace and to enforce prompt and full payment for produce nationwide.
It remains unclear how much of the $1.9 million owed to the 20 sellers, or the separate $85,303 Wisconsin reparation debt, has actually been recovered through the PACA trust lawsuits or Syme's bankruptcy proceeding. It is also unknown whether Syme intends to seek a USDA-approved surety bond to re-enter the produce industry once he becomes eligible. Anyone with questions about the case can reach the USDA's PACA Investigative Enforcement Branch at (202) 720-6873.
