BRIEFLY / FOOD : Wal-Mart to Settle Avocado Import Charges

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will pay the Agriculture Department $45,000 to settle charges that the nation’s largest retailer violated the government’s strict avocado import rules, USDA officials said. Under the agreement, Wal-Mart neither admitted nor denied the allegations. The government charged the company in October with 156 counts of violating rules governing the importation of Mexican avocados into the United States. Each count carried a potential $1,000 fine. The USDA charged that Wal-Mart brought Mexican Hass avocados into states that do not restrict avocado imports and then transferred 668 cartons of the fruit, during late 1997 and early 1998, into states where the avocados are not permitted. According to a settlement document, Wal-Mart, based in Bentonville, Ark., claimed it did not know the avocados came from Mexico. More than 50 companies face similar allegations to those leveled against Wal-Mart, and the alleged violations have prompted the USDA to propose stricter rules. Wal-Mart shares rose $1.88 to close at $47.56 on the NYSE.