Under Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) regulations, shell egg handlers are limited as to the number of cracked, leaking and dirty eggs they can transport and sell in commerce. Jong’s Egg Ranch paid a civil penalty of $1,762 for selling and transporting and offering to sell and transport eggs that exceeded the number of cracked, leaking and dirty eggs permitted under official standards for US Consumer Grade B shell eggs.

AMS administers shell egg provisions of the EPIA. While the EPIA authorizes the Department to institute formal administrative proceedings against egg handlers who violate the Act, egg handlers have the option of waiving their opportunity to a hearing and paying a civil penalty without admitting fault.

Because formal disciplinary proceedings can take up to two years and can be costly for both those cited and the Department, AMS uses such stipulation agreements to improve compliance and resolve cases in a quicker and less expensive manner.