H. B. 2441
(By Delegates Williams, Beach, Facemyer,
Seacrist, Everson, Henderson and Stalnaker)
[Introduced March 6, 1997; referred to the
Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section ten, article two-b, chapter
nineteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to authorizing the
commissioner of agriculture to inspect any meat product,
poultry product or any other agricultural commodity sold to
a state institution; and prohibitions.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section ten, article two-b, chapter nineteen of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2B. INSPECTION OF MEAT AND POULTRY.
§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
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 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 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 deliver, a 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;
(ee)For any person to deliver, with intent to deceive,
any graded meat product, or poultry product or any other
agricultural commodity to a state institution that does not meet
the grade specifications for that grade when a specified grade is
required in a contract. In addition to any other powers conveyed
in this article, the commissioner may inspect any meat product,
poultry product or any other agricultural commodity sold to a
state institution to enforce the provisions of this subdivision.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize the
Commissioner of Agriculture to inspect any meat product, poultry
product or any other agricultural commodity sold to a state
institution to insure that the product meets the grade
specifications set forth in the purchase contract.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.