Holy Guacamole!
Guacamole comes from Happy 'Cados
Originally uploaded by santa barbarian.
This news is the pits for our local avocado growers.
State auditors say employees of the California Avocado Commission misspent tens of thousands of dollars in farmers' contributions on clothing, gifts and other personal expenses.
The audit released Friday also claims the Commission's former chief executive improperly used $17,000 to renovate his home.
Mark Affleck, who resigned as Chief Executive in May to take a leadership position with Saddleback Church, declined to comment friday. AP via Yahoo News
...The 89-page audit paints a picture of a freespending organization whose employees dipped regularly at the trough, charging up birthday gifts and flowers for colleagues, running personal mail through FedEx accounts and regularly charging lunches for the entire staff.
It says employees racked up more than $1.5 million on commission-issued credit cards from 2005-2008, the three fiscal years covered in the audit. Some of those charges were called "questionable at best and even personal at times." - SFgate
Maybe that's why our avocados are a little pricey of late....Commission board members, their spouses, guests and employees spent thousands of dollars on "massages, nail service, facials and body treatments" during meetings at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel and at luxury spas in La Jolla and Del Mar in San Diego County. - LATimes
Labels: avocado, California Agriculture, corruption
