Breedlove Food Inc., a local nonprofit, is waiting for $1.4 million owed to it for disaster relief efforts in Puerto Rico. Breedlove representatives are not sure when or if that money will ever get back to them.
Breedlove operates by entering into contracts with organizations to help provide dehydrated foods for humanitarian purposes. This past fall, Breedlove entered into a contract for $1.4 million with Tribute Contracting LLC, a company based in Georgia. That money came from a $156 million contract Tribute received from FEMA to help Hurricane Maria relief in Puerto Rico.
Under the contract, Breedlove would be required to produce, provide and have available 828,000 meal servings starting on October 18, according to Breedlove’s CEO Bill Miller. Breedlove planned to ship 28 containers daily.
Miller said Breedlove sent the first shipment on time, but it was refused by FEMA agents at a port in Jacksonville, Florida.
Breedlove stopped its shipments and processing of new shipments. Breedlove was told by FEMA agents that all shipments would be refused because FEMA canceled the initial contract with Tribute.
According to the New York Times, which first reported the story, FEMA contacted Tribute’s owner and sole employee, Tiffany Brown, and said the contract was canceled and this was a “logistical nightmare.”
By this time, 18.5 million meals were due, and Tribute had only delivered 50,000. There was also a problem with the food that had been delivered. According to the Times, FEMA inspectors discovered the food had been packaged separately from the pouches used to heat them.
FEMA insisted to the New York Times that no Puerto Ricans missed a meal as a result of the failed agreement with Tribute.
“It’s in our warehouse. It was specifically blended for tribute and for ultimate use in Puerto Rico and there it sits,” said Miller.
By that time, Breedlove had already prepared four containers to ship, which is about 140,000 meals, and already purchased the raw materials to continue delivering on their contract.
“We stopped production and had a dialogue with Dr. Brown,” said Miller. “We basically advised her that she was in breach of contract. Our contract provides a cure period. We got to recover some costs in there.”
Breedlove has been in contact with lawyers and will pursue further legal action.
“What I know, if we have a mission, we met it and we fully complied under the contract, and we’re going to protect our interest in that contract,” said Miller.
Tribute is now disputing the FEMA termination. She filed an appeal stating that she was wrongfully fired for something that was not specified in the contract. She is seeking a settlement of at least $70 million.
“You look back and you say, ‘What have we learned from this, what can we incorporate this in our learning cycle?’ These situations, they happen like that, they want the food yesterday, they need the food the day before yesterday,” said Miller.
Overall, Breedlove is not in financial trouble because of this particular contract.
“You decide to invest the emotion and time and some money and you make an educated business decision, and that’s what we did,” said Miller.
According to the New York Times, Brown had never been hired for mass disaster relief before. Her previous government contracts had failed before as well. FEMA’s response to Hurricane Maria is now in question with other federal agencies.
