Senate Bill No. 297
(By Senator Whitlow)
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[Introduced February 2, 1996; referred to the Committee
on Agriculture.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact sections two, six and ten, article
two-b, chapter nineteen of the code of West Virginia,
one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, all
relating to agriculture; inspection of meat and poultry;
definitions; inspections; additional prohibitions; and
criminal offenses.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections two, six and ten, article two-b, chapter
nineteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 2B. INSPECTION OF MEAT AND POULTRY.
§19-2B-2. Definitions.
Unless the context in which used clearly requires a
different meaning, as used in this article:
(a) "Department" means the department of agriculture of the
state of West Virginia;
(b) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of agriculture of
the state of West Virginia and duly authorized representatives;
(c) "Person" means any individual, partnership, corporation,
association, or other entity;
(d) "Contract veterinarian" means a graduate of a school of
veterinary medicine accredited by the American Veterinary Medical
Association who provides services for the department under
contract;
(e) "Veterinary supervisor" means a graduate of a school of
veterinary medicine accredited by the American Veterinary Medical
Association, employed by the department and authorized by the
commissioner to perform on his or her behalf any inspection and
supervisory functions under this article;
(f) "Inspector" means an individual employed by the
department and authorized by the commissioner to perform on his
or her behalf any inspection and supervisory functions under this
article;
(g) "State inspection" means inspection services conducted
by the department at or in connection with establishments
required to be licensed by this article;
(h) "W. Va. condemned," or abbreviation thereof, means the
animal or poultry so marked has been inspected and found to be in
a dying condition, or to be affected with any other condition or
disease that would require condemnation of its carcass;
(i) "W. Va. inspected and condemned," or abbreviation
thereof, means that the carcass, meat product or poultry product,
so marked or so identified, is adulterated and shall be disposed
of in the manner prescribed by the commissioner;
(j) "W. Va. retained" means that the carcass, meat product
or poultry product or any ingredient used in processing, or any
direct or indirect container used for meat products or poultry
products so identified is held for further examination by a
veterinary supervisor or contract veterinarian to determine its
disposal;
(k) "W. Va. suspect" means that the animal or poultry so
marked and identified is suspected of being affected with a
disease or condition which may require its condemnation, in whole
or in part, when slaughtered, and is subject to further examination by a contract veterinarian or veterinary supervisor
to determine its disposal;
(l) "W. Va. inspected and passed," or abbreviation thereof,
means that the carcass, meat product or poultry product so marked
or so identified, was at the time it was so marked or so
identified found to be wholesome;
(m) "Country" when used in the name of a meat product or
poultry product means that such meat product or poultry product
was actually prepared on a farm;
(n) "Federal inspection" means the meat and poultry
inspection service conducted by the food safety and inspection
service of the United States department of agriculture;
(o) "Federal Meat Inspection Act" means the act so entitled,
approved March four, one thousand nine hundred seven, as amended
by the Wholesome Meat Act.
(p) "Federal Poultry Products Inspection Act" means the act
of Congress approved August twenty-eighth, one thousand nine
hundred fifty-seven, as amended;
(q) "Inspection legend" means a mark or a statement on a
carcass, meat product or poultry product indicating the same has
been inspected and passed in this state under the provisions of this article;
(r) "Label" means a display of written, printed or graphic
matter on a container indicating the carcass, meat product or
poultry product contained therein has been inspected and passed
in this state under the provisions of this article;
(s) "Official inspection mark" means any symbol prescribed
by the commissioner for the purpose of identifying the inspection
status of any meat product or poultry product so inspected;
(t) "Establishment number" means an official number assigned
by the commissioner to each establishment and included on the
inspection legend and label to identify all inspected and passed
carcasses, meat product or poultry product handled in that
establishment;
(u) "Container" and "package" shall include, but not be
limited to, any box, can, tin, cloth, plastic or any other
receptacle, wrapper or cover;
(v) "Sell" means offer for sale, expose for sale, have in
possession for sale, exchange, barter or trade;
(w) "Animals" mean cattle, swine, sheep and goats;
(x) "Carcass" means all or any part of a slaughtered animal
or poultry, including viscera, which is capable of being used for human consumption;
(y) "Meat" means the edible part of the muscle of animals or
poultry, which is skeletal or which is found in the tongue, in
the diaphragm, in the heart or in the esophagus, with or without
the accompanying or overlying fat, and the portions of bone,
skin, sinew nerve and blood vessels which normally accompany the
muscle tissue and which are not separated from it in the process
of dressing; it does not include the muscle found in the lips,
snout or ears;
(z) "Meat food product" means any article of food for human
consumption or any article which enters into the composition of
food for human consumption, which is derived or prepared in whole
or in part from any portion of any animal or poultry, except
organotherapeutic substances, meat juices, meat extract and the
like which are only for medicinal purposes and are advertised
only to the medical profession; any edible part of the carcass
which has been manufactured, cured, smoked, processed or
otherwise treated shall be considered a meat food product;
(aa) "Meat by-product" means any edible part of an animal or
poultry other than meat or meat food product;
(bb) "Meat product" means any meat, meat food product, and meat by-product capable of use as human food;
(cc) "Poultry" means any domesticated bird which is used or
intended to be used for human consumption;
(dd) "Poultry meat" means the carcass or parts of such
carcass of any poultry;
(ee) "Poultry food product" means any product of poultry,
other than eggs, capable of use as human food which is made
wholly or in part from any poultry meat or other portion of the
carcass of poultry;
(ff) "Poultry by-product" means any part or parts of
poultry, other than eggs, capable of use as human food, other
than poultry carcass which have been derived from one or more
birds;
(gg) "Poultry product" means any poultry meat, poultry food
product, and poultry by-product capable of use as human food;
(hh) "Process" means to cut up, bone, chop, mix, grind,
slice, cook, smoke, cure, salt, marinate, dry, can, or otherwise
manufacture, process, or package any meat product or poultry
product;
(ii) "Denature" means the uniform application of sufficient
quantities of crude carbolic acid, cresylic disinfectant, or any other agent approved by the commissioner upon and into the freely
slashed flesh of any carcass or product condemned;
(jj) "Decharacterization" means the uniform application of
sufficient quantities of dye, charcoal, malodorous fish oil, or
any other agent approved by the commissioner, upon and into the
freely slashed flesh of carcasses or meat not being rendered, so
as to unequivocally preclude its use for human food;
(kk) "Inedible" means the carcass, meat product or poultry
product derived from 4-D or condemned animals or poultry, or meat
products or poultry products which have deteriorated or are
otherwise unfit for human consumption;
(ll) "4-D animal or 4-D poultry" means an animal or poultry
that is dead, dying, down or diseased on arrival at the
slaughterhouse;
(mm) "Commercial slaughterer" means a person engaged for
profit in this state in the business of slaughtering animals or
poultry for human consumption which are to be sold or offered for
sale through a commercial outlet or establishment, and shall
include a person who in addition to such commercial slaughtering
also engages in the business of a custom slaughterer;
(nn) "Custom slaughterer" means a person engaged for profit in this state in the business of slaughtering animals or poultry
for human consumption which are not to be sold or offered for
sale through a commercial outlet, commercial establishment,
distributor, or to an individual, and shall include the boning or
cutting up of carcasses of such animals or poultry and the
grinding, chopping and mixing of the carcasses thereof;
(oo) "Slaughterhouse" shall include, but not be limited to,
all buildings, structures and facilities used in the slaughtering
of animals or poultry for human consumption;
(pp) "Distributor" means a person engaged for profit in this
state in the business where carcasses, meat products or poultry
products are received from state inspected establishments, or
establishments inspected by the United States department of
agriculture and who stores and distributes to commercial outlets,
processors or individuals and who conducts no processing;
(qq) "Processor" means a person who engages for profit in
this state in the business of processing carcasses, meat products
or poultry products for human consumption;
(rr) "Commercial processor" means a processor for commercial
outlets or distributors and shall include the business of custom
processing;
(ss) "Custom processor" means a processor in which the
carcass, meat products or poultry products derived through
processing cannot be sold or offered for sale through a
commercial outlet, commercial establishment, distributor, or to
an individual;
(tt) "Processing plant" shall include, but not be limited
to, all buildings, structures, chill rooms, aging rooms,
processing rooms, sanitary facilities, other facilities, and
utensils, used by or in connection with the operations of a
processor;
(uu) "Establishment" means any slaughterhouse, processing
plant or distributor in this state;
(vv) "Related industries" means rendering plants,
refrigerated meat warehouses, food lockers, meat and poultry
wholesalers, brokers, pet food manufacturers, other animal food
manufacturers, animal impoundments whose main source of food
supply is derived from the raw meats, transportation firms and
private carriers;
(ww) "Commercial outlet" means a place of business in this
state and shall include all retail stores and public eating
places in which carcasses, meat products or poultry products are stored, sold or offered for sale for human consumption by the
purchaser or other individual consumers;
(xx) "Commercial dealer" means any person who operates one
or more commercial outlets and who sells or offers for sale
thereat any carcasses, meat products or poultry products for
human consumption, and who does not can, cook, cure, dry, smoke
or render any carcass, meat products or poultry products at such
outlets and who conducts no slaughtering or preparing of
carcasses, meat products or poultry products at such outlets
other than boning or cutting up of carcasses, and other than
grinding, chopping and mixing operations at such outlets with
respect to trim or meat derived only from such boning or cutting
up operations "Retail meat and poultry store" means a place of
business where the sales of meat products and poultry products
are made to individual consumers, only federally or state
inspected products are handled and only simple processing such as
cutting up, boning, chopping, mixing, slicing, grinding, freezing
or breaking bulk shipment of product is conducted. Any place of
business where complex processing, such as canning, cooking
curing, smoking, marinating or drying is conducted is deemed to
be a commercial processing plant that requires license from the commissioner to operate.
(yy) "Custom slaughtered carcass, meat or poultry" or
"custom processed meat products or poultry products" mean,
respectively, carcasses, meat products or poultry products which
were slaughtered, or processed by a custom slaughterer;
(zz) "Wholesome" means sound, healthful, clean, and
otherwise fit for human consumption;
(aaa) "Adulterated" means and shall apply to any carcass,
part thereof, meat product or poultry product under one or more
of the following circumstances:
(1) If it bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious
substance which may render it injurious to health; but in case
the substance is not an added substance, such carcass, meat
product or poultry product shall not be considered adulterated
under this clause if the quantity of such substance in or on such
carcass, meat product or poultry product does not ordinarily
render it injurious to health;
(2) (A) If it bears or contains (by reason of administration
of any substance to the live animal or poultry or otherwise) any
added poisonous or added deleterious substance (other than one
which is a pesticide chemical in or on a raw agricultural commodity; a food additive; or a color additive) which may, in
the judgment of the commissioner make such carcass, meat product
or poultry product unfit for human food;
(B) If it is, in whole or in part, a raw agricultural
commodity and such commodity bears or contains a pesticide
chemical which is unsafe within the meaning of the federal Food,
Drug and Cosmetic Act;
(C) If it bears or contains any food additive which is
unsafe within the meaning of the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic
Act;
(D) If it bears or contains any color additive which is
unsafe within the meaning of the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic
Act: Provided, That a carcass, meat product or poultry product
which is not adulterated under paragraph (B), (C) or (D) of this
subsection, shall nevertheless be deemed adulterated if use of
the pesticide chemical, food additive, or color additive in or on
such carcass, meat product or poultry product is prohibited by
rules in establishments at which inspection is maintained;
(3) If it consists in whole or in part of any filthy,
putrid, or decomposed substance or is for any other reason
unsound, unhealthful, unwholesome, or otherwise unfit for human food;
(4) If it has been processed, packed, or held under
insanitary conditions whereby it may have become contaminated
with filth or pathogenic microorganisms, or whereby it may have
been rendered injurious to health;
(5) If it is, in whole or in part, the product of an animal
or poultry which has died otherwise than by slaughter;
(6) If its container is composed, in whole or in part, of
any poisonous or deleterious substance which may render the
contents injurious to health;
(7) If it has been intentionally subjected to radiation,
unless the use of the radiation was in conformity with a
regulation or exemption in effect pursuant to the federal Food,
Drug and Cosmetic Act;
(8) If any valuable constituent has been in whole or in part
omitted or abstracted therefrom; or if any substance has been
substituted, wholly or in part therefor; or if damage or
inferiority has been concealed in any manner; or if any substance
has been added thereto or mixed or packed therewith so as to
increase its bulk or weight, or reduce its quality or strength,
or make it appear better or of greater value than it is;
(bbb) "Antemortem" means before death;
(ccc) "Postmortem" means after death;
(ddd) "Reinspection" means inspection of the processing of
carcass, meat products and poultry products, as well as a
reexamination of products previously inspected;
(eee) "Licensee" means any person licensed under the
provisions of this article.
(fff) "Misbranded: applies to any carcass, meat product or
poultry product under one or more of the following circumstances:
(1) If its labeling is false or misleading in any
particular;
(2) If it is offered for sale under the name of another meat
product or poultry product;
(3) If it is an imitation of another meat product or poultry
product; unless its label bears, in type of uniform size and
prominence, the word "imitation" and immediately thereafter, the
name of the meat product or poultry product imitated;
(4) If its container is made, formed or filled as to be
misleading;
(5) Unless it bears a label showing: (A) The name and place
of business of the establishment; and (B) an accurate statement of the quantity of the contents in terms of weight, measure or
numerical count;
(6) If any word, statement or other information required by
or under authority of this article to appear on the label or
other labeling is not prominently placed thereon with such
conspicuousness (as compared with other words, statements,
designs or devices, in the labeling) and in such terms as to
render it likely to be read and understood by the ordinary
individual under customary conditions of purchase and use;
(7) If it purports to be or is represented as a meat product
or poultry product for which a definition and standard of
identity or composition has been prescribed by rules promulgated
by the commissioner unless: (A) It conforms to such definition
and standards; and (b) its label bears the name of the meat
product or poultry product specified in the definition and
standard of identity and the common names of optional ingredients
(other than spices, flavoring and coloring) present in such
products;
(8) If it is not subject to the provisions of subsection
(7), unless its label bears: (A) The common or usual name of the
meat product or poultry product, if any there be, and (B) in case it is fabricated from two or more ingredients, the common or
usual name of each such ingredient; except that spices,
flavorings and colorings may be designated as such without naming
each.
(9) If it purports to be or is represented for special
dietary uses, unless its label bears such information concerning
its vitamin, mineral and other dietary properties as the
commissioner determines to be necessary in order fully to inform
purchasers as to its value for such used;
(10) If it bears or contains any artificial flavoring,
artificial coloring or chemical preservative, unless it bears
labeling stating that fact; or
(11) If it fails to bear, directly thereon or on its
container, as the commissioner may by rules prescribe, the
inspection legend and, unrestricted by any of the foregoing, such
other information as the commissioner may require in such rules
to assure that it will not have false or misleading labeling and
that the public will be informed of the manner of handling
required to maintain the meat product or poultry product in a
wholesome condition.
§19-2B-6. Inspection, marking, labeling, branding, etc.; quarantine; segregation; scheduling of
operations; disposition of carcasses, etc.;
reinspection; health examination; rejection tags.
(a) The commissioner shall provide antemortem and postmortem
inspection of all animals and poultry which are to be sold or
offered for sale through a commercial outlet, establishment or
distributor.
(b) The commissioner shall provide reinspection of
carcasses, meat products and poultry products during further
processing which have previously been inspected.
(c) All inspections under the provisions of this article
shall be performed in accordance with reasonable rules
promulgated by the commissioner.
(d) The commissioner shall inspect all establishments under
state inspection to make certain that they are operating in
accordance with the provisions of this article and all reasonable
rules promulgated by the commissioner.
(e) When one inspector is assigned to make inspections at
two or more establishments where few animals or poultry are
slaughtered, or where small quantities of carcasses, meat
products or poultry products are processed, or where the operations at such establishments are sporadic, and such
establishments in any of such cases are in reasonable close
proximity to one another, the commissioner, giving full
consideration to the convenience of the licensees of such
establishments and considering the available inspection work
force, may by written notice to such licensees specify a
reasonable schedule for such operations: Provided, That the
commissioner may not require operations other than during normal
working hours.
(f) Every conveyance used by any establishment under state
inspection, and, notwithstanding the provisions of section seven
of this article, every conveyance used by any slaughterhouse,
processing plant or distributor inspected by the United States
department of agriculture, for the transportation of carcasses,
meat products or poultry products shall be maintained in a clean
and sanitary condition and may be inspected in accordance with
the provisions of this article and reasonable rules promulgated
by the commissioner.
(g) The commissioner shall require such quarantine and
segregation of animals or poultry, carcasses, meat products or
poultry products in establishments as is deemed necessary to effectuate the provisions of this article.
(h) The head, tongue, tail, thymus glands, viscera, blood
and other parts of any slaughtered animal shall be retained in
such a manner as to preserve their identity until after the
postmortem inspection has been completed.
(i) Each licensee shall pay for such devices for the
affixing of marks, brands, or stamps and for such labels as may
be prescribed for his or her establishment by the commissioner.
Such devices and labels shall be under the exclusive control and
supervision of the commissioner. The label used by any licensee
shall be of the form and size prescribed by reasonable rules
promulgated by the commissioner.
(j) Each animal or poultry carcass that has been inspected
and passed in this state by the commissioner shall be marked at
the time of inspection with the inspection legend. Any animal or
poultry carcass which is not passed shall be marked conspicuously
by the commissioner at the time of inspection in the following
manner: "W. Va. inspected and condemned," or any abbreviation
thereof.
(k) Each primal part of an animal or poultry carcass that
has been inspected and passed shall be marked with the inspection legend, and each liver, beef heart and beef tongue that has been
inspected and passed shall be branded with the inspection legend
at the time of final inspection. Meat that has been boned out,
cut from primal parts or otherwise changed so that the inspection
legend is no longer plainly visible, and meat products and
poultry products that are too small to be marked with the
inspection legend shall be packed in closed containers to which
shall be affixed the label indicating that the meat products or
poultry products contained therein have been inspected and
passed. Upon removal of the contents of such containers bearing
such label, the label shall be defaced to prevent its reuse.
(l) All carcasses, and meat products and poultry products
which have been derived from an animal or poultry slaughtered by
a custom slaughterer or processed by a custom slaughterer or
custom processor shall be marked "W. Va. custom slaughtered" in
letters not less than three eights of an inch in height.
(m) Each official inspection mark shall contain the
establishment number of the establishment involved, unless
otherwise authorized by rules promulgated by the commissioner.
(n) The commissioner is hereby authorized and empowered to
seize and destroy: (1) Any animal or poultry to be slaughtered in this state and thereafter sold or offered for sale through a
commercial outlet or distributor which cannot be made fit for
human consumption; (2) any animal or poultry, carcass, meat
product or poultry product slaughtered or processed in this state
in violation of the provisions of this article or any reasonable
rules promulgated by the commissioner; (3) any carcass, meat
product or poultry product that does not bear an inspection
legend or meat label provided for by this article or which has
not been inspected and passed under inspection provided by the
United States department of agriculture and which is intended to
be sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet or
distributor; and (4) any animal or poultry, carcass, meat product
or poultry product which is adulterated.
Where appropriate the commissioner may in lieu of
destruction as aforesaid denature, decharacterize, mutilate or
slash any carcass, meat product or poultry product intended to be
sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet or
distributor. The commissioner is also authorized and empowered
to seize and retain under a retained tag any animal or poultry,
carcass, meat product or poultry product until the commissioner
determines to destroy, denature, decharacterize, mutilate, slash or release the same. Whenever the commissioner is authorized or
empowered to take any of the actions specified in this
subsection, he or she may order and direct the person having
custody or possession of such animal or poultry, carcass, meat
product or poultry product, or the licensee of the establishment
in which it is found, to be responsible for the disposition
thereof, as well as any necessary storage, handling or other
incidentals related thereto. Such disposition shall be carried
out only under the direction and supervision of the commissioner.
(o) Whenever practicable, the commissioner shall forego the
actions authorized in the immediately preceding subsection and
permit reprocessing if such reprocessing will correct or
eliminate the conditions which would have justified any of such
actions. Any such reprocessing in this state shall be under the
supervision of the commissioner.
(p) Whenever the commissioner has good cause to believe that
any carcass, meat product or poultry product whether fresh,
frozen, or processed, and which is intended to be sold or offered
for sale through a commercial outlet or distributor, may be
adulterated or otherwise injurious to health, he or she may
inspect or reinspect the same under the provisions of this article and any reasonable rules promulgated by him or her, even
though such carcass, meat product or poultry product may have
been previously inspected and passed.
(q) No licensee shall employ in any establishment any person
who has any communicable disease or infected wounds or who is a
carrier of any communicable disease. To enforce the provisions
of this subsection, the commissioner may require any employee or
prospective employee to submit to a health examination by a
physician and furnish to the commissioner a certificate from such
physician concerning his or her findings. The cost of conducting
such examination and furnishing such certificate shall be borne
by the licensee concerned.
(r) Whenever the commissioner inspects any room,
compartment, equipment or utensil in any establishment subject to
state inspection and finds the same not to be clean and sanitary
or finds the same to be otherwise unsuitable for the slaughtering
or processing operations carried on in such establishment, he or
she shall affix thereto a rejection tag or rejection notice. No
such rejected room, compartment, equipment or utensil shall be
used until the deficiencies requiring such rejection shall have
been fully and completely corrected and the rejection tag or rejection notice has been removed. No person other than the
commissioner shall remove any such rejection tag or notice.
(s) When any animal or poultry, carcass, meat product or
poultry product has been inspected hereunder, the appropriate
official inspection mark shall be affixed thereto, and no person
shall remove the same unless authorized so to do by the
commissioner.
§19-2B-10. Additional prohibitions.
In addition to any other prohibitions contained in this
article, it shall be unlawful:
(a) For any person to operate any establishment under state
inspection which is not clean and sanitary;
(b) To slaughter any adulterated animal or poultry intended
to be sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet or
distributor;
(c) To sell or offer for sale through a commercial outlet or
distributor any carcass, meat product or poultry product for
human consumption which is adulterated;
(d) To slaughter for human consumption any animal or poultry
tagged or permanently identified as "W. Va. condemned," or
abbreviation thereof;
(e) To process, sell or offer for sale for human consumption
any carcass, meat product or poultry product which is mislabeled
with intent to deceive or which is marked "W. Va. inspected and
condemned," or abbreviation thereof;
(f) To process in an establishment under state inspection
for sale through any commercial outlet or distributor any
carcass, meat product or poultry product intended for human
consumption and derived in whole or in part from any calf, pig,
kid, lamb, chicken or turkey which is so immature as to be
lacking in nutritional value;
(g) To knowingly or intentionally expose any carcass, meat
product and poultry product in any establishment under state
inspection to insects, live animals or any contamination;
(h) To add kangaroo meat, horse meat, mule meat or other
equine meat to any animal meat, meat product or poultry product
derived from animals and to be sold or offered for sale through
commercial outlets or distributors for human consumption;
(i) To remove any hide, skin or any other part of an unborn
or stillborn animal or poultry in the confines of a room in an
establishment where any animals or poultry, carcasses, meat
products or poultry products are slaughtered or processed, as the case may be, or to be sold or offered for sale through a
commercial outlet or distributor;
(j) To process for human consumption in any establishment
subject to state inspection any carcass, meat product and poultry
product derived from any animal or poultry which died other than
by slaughter;
(k) To transport to any commercial outlet or distributor for
the purpose of being sold or offered for sale therein, any
carcass, meat product or poultry product which is not marked,
branded or stamped as having been inspected and passed by the
commissioner or by the United States department of agriculture;
(l) For any commercial outlet or distributor to receive, for
the purpose of being sold or offered for sale therein, any
carcass, meat product or poultry product which is not marked,
branded or stamped as having been inspected and passed by the
commissioner or by the United States department of agriculture;
(m) To slaughter any horse, mule or other equine in any
establishment under state inspection in which animals or poultry
are slaughtered for human consumption for the purpose of being
sold or offered for sale through commercial outlets;
(n) To bring any kangaroo meat, horse meat, mule meat or other equine meat into any establishment under state inspection
where animal or poultry carcasses, meat products or poultry
products are processed for human consumption for the purpose of
being sold or offered for sale through commercial outlets;
(o) To transport, process, sell or offer for sale any
kangaroo meat, horse meat, mule meat or other equine meat within
this state for human consumption unless it is conspicuously and
plainly identified or stamped as such;
(p) For any person to use an establishment number not
assigned to him or her or to use an establishment number in
connection with operations concerning which a different
establishment number was assigned by the commissioner;
(q) To remove from any article any retained tag affixed by
the commissioner, unless such removal is authorized by him or
her;
(r) To remove from any room, compartment, equipment or
utensil any rejection tag or rejection notice affixed by the
commissioner, unless such removal is authorized by him or her;
(s) For a licensee to use any container bearing an official
inspection mark unless it contains the exact carcass, meat
product or poultry product which was in the container at the time such contents were inspected and passed: Provided, That such a
container may be otherwise used if such official inspection mark
thereon is removed, obliterated or destroyed, and such other use
is authorized by reasonable rules promulgated by the
commissioner;
(t) For any person, other than the commissioner, to possess,
keep or use, except as authorized by the commissioner, any meat
label or device for the affixing of a mark, brand or stamp
prescribed for inspection purposes hereunder;
(u) For any person, with intent to deceive, to possess, keep
or use any label, mark, brand or stamp similar in character or
import to an official label, mark, brand or stamp prescribed by
the commissioner hereunder or to an official label, mark, brand
or stamp used by the United States department of agriculture;
(v) To falsely make, falsely issue, falsely publish, alter,
forge, simulate or counterfeit any inspection certificate,
memorandum, label, mark, brand, or stamp, or device for making an
inspection mark, brand or stamp, or to possess, keep or use the
same, with intent to deceive;
(w) For any person to refuse to permit the commissioner to
enter and inspect at any time, upon presentation of appropriate credentials, an establishment under state inspection, or to
interfere with any such lawful entry or inspection;
(x) For any person to refuse to permit the commissioner,
upon presentation of appropriate credentials, to examine and copy
the records described in section five of this article;
(y) For a person to prevent or fail to decharacterize or
denature carcasses, meat products or poultry products as
prescribed by reasonable rules promulgated by the commissioner;
(z) For a person to transport offal, blood, or inedible and
condemned parts of animal and poultry carcasses from
slaughterhouses, processing plants or other related industries:
Provided, That such products may be transported if placed in
suitable containers with tight covers, or watertight tanks so as
not to contaminate the public highways or private roadways while
going to or from the points of pickup;
(aa) For a person to store offal, blood, or inedible and
condemned parts of animal and poultry carcasses from
slaughterhouses, processing plants or other related industries
during interim transit movement in refrigerated warehouses, food
lockers or other related industries: Provided, That such
products may be otherwise stored if properly marked "NOT FOR HUMAN FOOD""FOR ANIMAL FOOD ONLY" and identified as approved
products to be used for animal food;
(bb) For a person knowingly to purchase or deliver, or both,
a 4-D dead or dying animal or poultry to an establishment in this
state;
(cc) For any person to transport carcasses, meat products
and poultry products that are intended for human consumption in
a manner which would permit the products to become adulterated;
(dd) For any person who forcibly assaults, resists, opposes,
impedes, intimidates, or interferes with the commissioner or his
or her representative while engaged in or on account of the
performances of his or her official duties.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is replace the definition of
"commercial dealer" with a new definition of "retail store";
provide a new definition of "misbranded"; clarify the expansion
of the definition of distributor; and make other technical
corrections to statutes relating to the inspection of meat and
poultry.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.