Owner of Northeast Iowa Organic Grain Brokerage Pleads Guilty to Fraudulent Sales- Nearly $140 Milli

[nitpicker]

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndia/pr/owner-northeast-iowa-organic-grain-brokerage-pleads-guilty-fraudulent-sales-totaling

Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Northern District of Iowa

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, December 20, 2018

Owner of Northeast Iowa Organic Grain Brokerage Pleads Guilty to Fraudulent Sales Totaling Nearly $140 Million

A Missouri man who fraudulently sold tens of millions of dollars’ worth of non-organic grain as though it was organic pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids. Randy Constant, age 61, from Chillicothe, Missouri, was convicted of one count of wire fraud. Constant admitted the fraudulent scheme involved at least $142,433,475 in grain sales, and the vast majority of those sales were fraudulent. At the hearing, he admitted that, from 2010 to 2017, he misled customers into thinking they were buying certified organic grain when the grain he was selling was not organic. Constant admitted falsely telling customers the grain he sold was grown on his certified organic fields in Nebraska and Missouri when the grain was not organic either because he purchased the grain from other growers, the certified organic fields were sprayed with unauthorized substances, or organic grain was mixed with non-organic grain. Constant made many of the sales through a brokerage he owned that operated in Ossian, Iowa, known as Jericho Solutions. As part of the plea, Constant also agreed to forfeit $128,190,128 in proceeds from the fraudulent scheme.

In related matters, three farmers from Nebraska previously pled guilty to fraud involving sales of grain they grew that was fraudulently marketed as organic. On October 12, 2018, Tom Brennan, age 70, James Brennan, age 40, and Mike Potter, age 41, all from Overton, Nebraska, were each convicted of one count of wire fraud. At their respective plea hearings, each man admitted to growing grain between 2010 and 2017 that was not organic. Each further admitted that they knew the grain was being marketed and sold as organic, even though it was not in fact organically grown. The charging documents allege that, during the 2010 to 2017 period, each of the three farmers received more than $2.5 million for grain fraudulently marketed as organic.
(snip)

[Lefta Dissenter]

1. Wow

Between this and Syngenta, why would anyone trust buying our corn?

[roscoeroscoe]

2. So many crooks in the news!

This one is really lame. He probably scoffed at organic standards, and thought he was a cool kid fooling the fools.

Go down, criminal.

[lunasun]

3. Sick

[SergeStorms]

4. So when you buy products at the store...

that say, "Organic" on them, think of this piece of shit. Then go to a farmer's market - if you're able - and buy directly from local farmers who you can talk to and rely upon.

[Farmer-Rick]

5. Yeah, that's your best bet

Meet the farmer. Look over the produce.

Look at the farmer's display. Are all the vegetables perfect? (If they are, there is a problem there. I actually put out some of my bug damaged veggies to show folks I cull out the worse.) Would the tomatoes and soft fruits if dropped get mushed and NOT bounce? (that's a good sign) Do the vegetables and fruits have a an odor, usually delicious? (Most of them should.)

Are the eggs different colors? (That's a pretty good sign they are free range hens.) Is the farmer willing to have you come and visit the farm? (That's a good sign if they say yes.)

Does the farmer have a lot of everything? (Most organic farmers can't grow everything in large quantities. They usually specialize or have a little of everything. The farmer with lots of everything, is probobly buying from other farmers. It still could be organic.)

Does the farmer know how the vegetables are raised? Can the farmer tell you the varieties they grow and why? Can the farmer tell you about the main problems this season? A knowledgeable farmer is a real farmer. But you may want to wait for when sales slow to talk to them.

Farmer's markets are a lifeline for small farmers and organic growers.

[SergeStorms]

6. I'd be lost without our local market...

I love meeting the people and talking to them about their views, not only about produce, but about their world views as well. My grandfather owned a small country store back in the 50s-70s and when I was a kid we'd go to the farmer's market all the time. That's where I got my education about small farmers and fresh produce.

Have a happy holiday season my friend.

[Farmer-Rick]

7. Thanks, and the same to you friend

[Ink Addict]

8. Oh, one may be able to talk to them but extreme due diligence might be necessary

before "relying" on them. Hubby recently worked for a local meat guy who pleaded with him to be Manager of a suburban store for him. It wasn't long before DH found out that title had little meaning as farmer-boss micro-managed every attempt to increase sales and suggestions re: marketing were disregarded or outright rejected. Farmer-boss treated the business like a hobby, his meat no more meaningful than a crafter doing bead necklaces for their friends. It was made crystal clear when farmer-boss reduced the agreed hourly rate and ultimately told DH bye-bye in favor of "only family" staffing his sad little meat market. It was so bad as to consider the guy wasn't even paying the required withholdings. Guess we'll see when and if the W-2 for the tax year arrives in a timely manner? Obviously, this farmer-boss was totally unreliable - Could his claims about quality raised and fed Black Angus, the pork, chicken, or eggs he'd obtained from other locals be equally unreliable? The guy sold off his hometown market and processing business out in the sticks and still was crying about financial difficulties with delivery costs even though he opted to continue the virtually invisible footprinted storefront in a place 80 miles away that catered to the desires of the more well-heeled clientele that "discovered" the place by accident or word of mouth. His social-media page(s) laughably go un-updated; his same-old web page most likely gleaned free from a marketing organization that was no longer one of his coupon "partner" though still searchable and full of out-dated, misleading content.

I had not heard of these fraud cases shared in the OP before and wonder now what I've actually consumed trying to purchase commercial breads claiming the certified organic label. To be sure, it's definitely not easy to escape the poisons in our foods anywhere bigAgri gets involved. Even farmers and growers may lie and cheat, knowingly or not. The wastefulness of pathogen-laden recalls and lack of timely inspections are disturbing over and above the outsourced food manufacturers in China.