Title 7 — AgricultureRelease 119-73

§2303 Prohibited practices

Title 7 › Chapter CHAPTER 56— - UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICES AFFECTING PRODUCERS OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS › § 2303

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Handlers must not knowingly let their employees or agents do any of the following. They may not force, threaten, or pressure producers about joining or leaving producer groups, refuse to buy from them for exercising that right, or treat them worse on price, quantity, quality, or other terms because of group membership. They also may not force producers to sign, break, cancel, or end memberships or contracts, pay or give gifts to make producers quit a group, spread lies about a group's money or leaders, or agree with others to do any of these things.

Full Legal Text

Title 7, §2303

Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

It shall be unlawful for any handler knowingly to engage or permit any employee or agent to engage in the following practices:

(a)To coerce any producer in the exercise of his right to join and belong to or to refrain from joining or belonging to an association of producers, or to refuse to deal with any producer because of the exercise of his right to join and belong to such an association; or

(b)To discriminate against any producer with respect to price, quantity, quality, or other terms of purchase, acquisition, or other handling of agricultural products because of his membership in or contract with an association of producers; or

(c)To coerce or intimidate any producer to enter into, maintain, breach, cancel, or terminate a membership agreement or marketing contract with an association of producers or a contract with a handler; or

(d)To pay or loan money, give any thing of value, or offer any other inducement or reward to a producer for refusing to or ceasing to belong to an association of producers; or

(e)To make false reports about the finances, management, or activities of associations of producers or handlers; or

(f)To conspire, combine, agree, or arrange with any other person to do, or aid or abet the doing of, any act made unlawful by this chapter.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

7 U.S.C. § 2303

Title 7 — Agriculture

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73