Stender v. Twin City Foods, Inc.

510 P.2d 221, 82 Wash. 2d 250, 1973 Wash. LEXIS 680
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedMay 17, 1973
Docket42265
StatusPublished
Cited by98 cases

This text of 510 P.2d 221 (Stender v. Twin City Foods, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stender v. Twin City Foods, Inc., 510 P.2d 221, 82 Wash. 2d 250, 1973 Wash. LEXIS 680 (Wash. 1973).

Opinions

[251]*251Wright, J.

This is an action on an alleged breach of a written contract.

On March 9, 1968, the plaintiff, Richard T. Stender, a pea grower, entered into a written contract with the defendant, Twin City Foods, Inc., a food processor. This contract was a mimeographed form prepared by the defendant and signed by both parties.

Under the terms of the contract, the plaintiff was required to plant, fertilize and cultivate 120 acres of “Perfection” peas, the seed of which was supplied by the defendant. In turn, the defendant was obligated to harvest and vine the peas at their proper maturity and pay a stipulated price for them, depending upon the quality of tenderness of the peas.

The defendant executed similar contracts with other pea growers; and, having first planted peas in 1959, the plaintiff was an experienced grower with knowledge that the defendant executed these similar contracts.

Under the agreement, the defendant made an assignment of planting dates which were routinely staggered so that various seed crops would mature at different times, thus allowing the defendant to harvest the crops of all its contract growers in a systematic manner. The plaintiff was assigned April 28 and 29, 1968 as planting dates on a 55-acre tract and May 11 and 12,1968 on a 65-acre tract.

Relative to the scheduling of crops, part 3, section 12 of the contract provides:

In Twin City scheduling of time for cutting and delivery, Twin City does not guarantee selection of most desirable time for maximum return of grade or tonnage and is obligated only to schedule crops in good faith for efficient harvesting and handling of the crop contracted hereby and by other similar contracts with other growers.

(Italics ours.)

The first planting of the 55-acre tract came to maturity and was properly harvested and vined by the defendant on [252]*252July 23, 1968. Of the remaining 65-acre tract, there were 2 acres which were blighted by wilt, leaving 63 acres of peas which became ready for harvesting in the period between July 27 and August 2, 1968. At this time, this block of 63 acres was bypassed by the defendant and the peas were not harvested.

The plaintiff brought the present action to recover damages for the failure of the defendant to harvest and vine the peas on this acreage, and for improperly bypassing and leaving the peas in the field. The plaintiff sought to recover $251 per acre or $15,213, the amount which the plaintiff would have received if the crop had been harvested by the defendant.

Defendant’s excuse for nonperformance in harvesting the peas was based upon part 5, section 1 of the contract, which provides:

In the event of circumstances resulting from adverse weather conditions, mechanical failures or other means that may delay harvest of the green pea crop beyond the optimum maturity for processing, Twin City has the option to divert that portion of Grower’s acreage for seed or feed purposes as the quality of the salvage may dictate.

The trial court found that the number of peas ready for harvest at the time of optimum maturity for processing exceeded the expectations of the defendant processor and that the reason for the excess was adverse weather conditions. Accordingly, judgment was entered allowing the plaintiff recovery of $6,615, with interest, for damages computed on the basis of a permissible bypass and for dry peas. The plaintiff’s complaint for general damages for failure to harvest and process the pea crop for freezing purposes was dismissed.

The issue raised on appeal is whether there was sufficient evidence for the trial court to find that the “adverse weather” condition was met, so as to excuse the defendant’s duty to perform its contractual obligation to harvést the plaintiff’s pea crop.

[253]*253The trial court made the following findings of fact. The adverse weather conditions consisted of an unusual, unexpected and severe fluctuation of ambient temperatures which prevented the routine scheduled maturing of the entire pea crop under contract to the defendant, of which entire crop plaintiff’s 63 acres constituted a part. In the period from July 12-20, 1968, the ambient temperatures were lower than normal, generally in the 60-degree range which had the effect of retarding maturation of the peas. From July 21-25, 1968, the ambient temperatures gradually increased, which started the peas “moving” toward maturity. From July 26-August 2, 1968, the ambient temperatures increased rapidly and substantially info the 80-degree range, which snapped all the peas to maximum maturity at the same time, rather than on the scheduled chronological series of ripening and maturity as had been planned and expected.1 As all the peas unexpectedly matured within an extremely short period of time, the defendant was unable to harvest all the peas of its contract growers and elected to bypass some of the peas.

There is substantial evidence in the record to support this finding. The record contains a recordation of the maximum and minimum temperatures from July 12 through August 2, 1968. Six witnesses appeared at the trial and five indicated that the weather pattern experienced during July and early August of 1968 was unusual and adverse, and one witness failed to testify on the point. The trial court’s findings of fact, if supported by substantial evidence, should not be disturbed on appeal. Thorndike v. [254]*254Hesperian Orchards, Inc., 54 Wn.2d 570, 343 P.2d 183 (1959); Zillah Feed Yards, Inc. v. Carlisle, 72 Wn.2d 240, 432 P.2d 650 (1967); Lindbrook Constr., Inc. v. Mukilteo School Dist. 6, 76 Wn.2d 539, 458 P.2d 1 (1969); Noah v. Montford, 77 Wn.2d 459, 463 P.2d 129 (1969); Sylvester v. Imhoff, 81 Wn.2d 637, 503 P.2d 734 (1972).

Resort must be made to the rules of construction and interpretation in examining the bypass provision of part 5, section 1 of the contract in question.

The writing in question is clearly integrated (part 3, section 12 of the contract). A contract provision must be read in pari materia with the whole contract and in light of all the circumstances surrounding the contract. Henry v. Lind, 76 Wn.2d 199, 455 P.2d 927 (1969).

Determination of the intent of the contracting parties is to be accomplished by viewing the contract as a whole, the subject matter and objective of the contract, all the circumstances surrounding the making of the contract, the subsequent acts and conduct of the parties to the contract, and the reasonableness of respective interpretations advocated by the parties. Jacoby v. Grays Harbor Chair & Mfg. Co., 77 Wn.2d 911, 468 P.2d 666 (1970); Ramsey v. Sedlar, 75 Wn.2d 901, 454 P.2d 416

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
510 P.2d 221, 82 Wash. 2d 250, 1973 Wash. LEXIS 680, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stender-v-twin-city-foods-inc-wash-1973.