State officials looking into meat company

Today the Fargo AP reported authorities say they are checking on a Minnesota-based meat company doing business here under a new name.
Farmers Pride Inc., a door-to-door meat company based in Blaine, Minn., is being sued by the Minnesota attorney general over claims of deceptive sales practices, fraud and false advertising. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture said the company gave up its food-handling license after it was linked to an E. coli contamination last June.
Officials in Minnesota and North Dakota say the company is now operating out of a Fargo warehouse under the name American Choice.
The state Consumer Protection Division director, Parrell Grossman, said investigators hope to speak with employees.
The Fargo office manager for American Choice, who would not give his name, said he has been told not to comment to area reporters.
Farmers Pride and similar companies have argued that their drivers are independent contractors and not company employees, Grossman said.