Chapter 97 — FOOD, LODGING, AND RECREATION

97.01 Definitions. In this chapter, unless inconsistent with context: (1g) “Bed and breakfast establishment” means any place of lodging that satisfies all of the following: (a) Provides 8 or fewer rooms for rent to no more than a total of 20 tourists or transients. (b) Provides n…

97.02 Standards; adulterated food. For the purposes of this chapter, a food is adulterated if it is adulterated within the meaning of 21 USC 342, except that the department may not consider a food to be adulterated solely because it contains hemp, as defined in s. 94.67 (15c), or…

97.03 Standards; misbranding. For the purposes of this chapter, a food is misbranded if it is misbranded within the meaning of 21 USC 343.

97.07 Interpretation. If an article is alleged to be misbranded because the labeling is misleading, then in determining whether the labeling is misleading, there shall be taken into ac- SUBCHAPTER II FOOD SAFETY AND REGULATION 97.12 Enforcement. (1) For the purpose of enforcing t…

97.09 Rules. (1) Definitions and standards of identity, composition, quality and fill of container for foods, and amendments thereto, now or hereafter adopted under the federal act or this chapter are definitions and standards of identity, composition, quality and fill of contain…

97.10 Prohibited acts. (1) The sale of any food that is adulterated or misbranded is prohibited. (2) It is unlawful to manufacture, prepare for sale, store, or sell food unless the food is protected from filth, flies, dust or other contamination or unclean, unhealthful or insanit…

97.13 Sale of fish flour regulated. No person shall sell any food product for human consumption within this state containing whole fish flour, except fish flour made from the normally edible portions of fish or fish protein concentrate. No package containing fish flour or fish pr…

97.17 Buttermaker and cheesemaker license. (1) In this section the terms “buttermaker” and “cheesemaker” mean a person employed or who may be employed in a butter or a cheese factory who has charge of and supervision over the actual process of manufacturing butter or cheese, and …

97.175 Butter and cheese grader license requirements. (1) In this section and ss. 97.176 and 97.177, “butter grader” or “cheese grader” means a person who grades butter or cheese. (2) No person may act as a butter grader or a cheese grader without a license granted by the departm…

97.176 and 97.177. (4) The department may deny, suspend or revoke a license under this section by an order if the department finds that the applicant or licensee is not qualified to act as a butter grader or cheese grader or that the applicant or licensee has applied inaccurate g…

97.177 Cheese; grading; labeling. (1) The department shall by rule adopt standards for grades of cheese manufactured in Wisconsin. (2) Cheese which carries a state grade must be graded by a cheese grader licensed under s. 97.175 and must conform to the standards for the grade. Gr…

97.18 Oleomargarine regulations. (1) (a) For the purposes of this section “oleomargarine” or “margarine” includes oleomargarine, margarine, butterine and other similar substances, fats and fat compounds sufficiently adaptable to the ordinary uses of butter, to lead readily to use…

97.20 Dairy plants. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: (a) “Dairy plant” means a processing plant, receiving station, or transfer station. (b) “Dairy product” means any of the following: 1. Milk or any product or by-product derived solely from milk. 2. Hooved or camelid mammals’ m…

97.21 Milk haulers and milk distributors. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: Updated 23-24 Wis. Stats. 8 (a) “Bulk milk tanker” means a mobile bulk container used to transport milk, fluid milk products, whey or whey cream in bulk from a dairy farm, or to or from a dairy plant in t…

97.22 Milk producers. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: (a) “Dairy farm” means any place where one or more cows, sheep or goats are kept for the production of milk. (b) “Dairy plant” has the meaning given under s. 97.20 (1) (a). (c) “Fluid milk product” has the meaning given unde…

97.23 Drug residues in milk. (1) In this section: (a) “Dairy plant” has the meaning given in s. 97.20 (1) (a). (c) “Milk producer” has the meaning given in s. 97.22 (1) (f). (2) (a) If, in accordance with a rule promulgated by the department under s. 93.07 (1), 97.09 (4), 97.20 (…

97.24 (1) (c). (fg) “Hooved or camelid mammal” includes water buffalo, Updated 23-24 Wis. Stats. 6 yaks, and other bovine species; camels, llamas, alpacas, and other camelid species; and horses, donkeys, and other equine species. (fm) “Hooved or camelid mammals’ milk” means the l…

97.25 Use of synthetic bovine growth hormone; labeling of dairy products. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: (a) “Dairy plant” has the meaning given in s. 97.20 (1) (a). (b) “Dairy product” means cow’s milk or any product or byproduct derived solely from cow’s milk, or any item in…

97.27 Food warehouses. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: (a) “Cold-storage warehouse” means a warehouse in which food is to be stored at temperatures between zero and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. (b) “Food warehouse” means a warehouse used for the storage of food, and includes a cold-s…

97.28 Direct sale of eggs. (1) In this section: (a) “Candling” means carefully examining, in a dark place, the interior and exterior of a whole egg that is placed in front of a strong light source. (b) “Egg” means the shell egg of the domestic chicken, Gallus gallus domesticus, a…

97.29 Food processing plants. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: (a) “Alcohol beverage” has the meaning given under s. 125.02 (1). (b) “Bakery” means any place where bread, crackers, pasta or pies, or any other food product for which flour or meal is the principal ingredient, are …

97.30 Retail food establishments. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: (a) “Agent city or county” means a city or county granted agent status by the department under s. 97.41. (b) “Food processing” has the meaning given under s. 97.29 (1) (g). (bm) Except as provided by the departme…

97.305 Restaurants serving fish. (1) A restaurant or temporary restaurant may serve fish taken from the wild to the individual who caught the fish, or to his or her guests, without obtaining a permit under s. 29.541 (1) (b) if all of the following conditions are satisfied: (a) Th…

97.307 Average annual surveys. The department or a local health department granted agent status under s. 97.41 shall annually make a number of inspections of restaurants in this state that shall equal the number of restaurants for which annual licenses are issued under s. 97.30. …

97.32 Special dairy and food inspectors. (1) Special dairy and food inspectors may be appointed by the department for any factory, plant, receiving station, or group thereof, which buys or receives milk or cream for the purpose of manufacturing, processing or any other purpose wh…

97.33 Certificate of food protection practices. (1g) In this section: (a) “Approved examination” means an examination that allows an individual to demonstrate basic knowledge of food protection practices and that is approved by the department as meeting the standards established …

97.34 Bottled drinking water and soda water beverage; standards; sampling and analysis. (1) In this section: (a) “Bottled drinking water” means all water packaged in bottles or similar containers and sold or distributed for drinking purposes. This term includes distilled water, a…

97.41 Retail food: agent status for local health departments. (1) In this section: (a) “Local board of health” has the meaning given in s. 250.01 (3). (b) “Local health department” has the meaning given in s. 250.01 (4). (1m) In the administration of this chapter, the department …

97.42 Compulsory inspection of livestock or poultry, and meat or poultry products. (1) DEFINITIONS. In this section: (b) “Capable of use as human food” applies to any meat or poultry product unless it is denatured, identified as unfit for human consumption as required by departme…

97.43 Meat from dead or diseased animals. (1) No meat from any diseased animal, or any dead animal as defined under s. 95.72 (1) (c), may be sold or used for human consumption, or dismembered or stored at premises where other food is sold or prepared for sale. (2) No carcass meat…

97.44 Identification of meat for animal feed; registration and records of buyers. (1) No person shall buy, sell or transport any carcasses, parts thereof or meat or meat food products of any animals which are not intended for use as human food, unless they are denatured or otherw…

97.56 Kosher meat. (1) Under this section “kosher” means prepared in accordance with the Jewish ritual and sanctioned by Hebrew orthodox religious requirements. (2) No person may, with intent to defraud, do any of the following: (a) Sell or expose for sale any meat or meat prepar…

97.57 Planted or cultivated rice. (1) In this section: (a) “Paddy-grown rice” means rice which is mechanically planted, mechanically harvested or cultivated with the use of chemical fertilizers or herbicides. (b) “Wild rice” means rice which is not mechanically harvested and whic…

97.59 Handling foods. No person in charge of any public eating place or other establishment where food products to be consumed by others are handled may knowingly employ any person handling food products who has a disease in a form that is communicable by food handling. If requir…

97.60 Coordination; certification. (1) The department shall enter into memoranda of understanding with other state agencies to establish food protection measures. (2) The department shall promulgate rules that establish a food sanitation manager certification program. (3) The dep…

97.603 Motels. Upon the written request of the hotel operator made on forms furnished by the department, the department may classify a hotel as a “motel”, if the operator of the hotel furnishes on-premises parking facilities for the motor vehicles of the hotel guests as a part of…

97.605 Lodging and vending licenses. (1) (a) No person may conduct, maintain, manage or operate a hotel, tourist rooming house, vending machine commissary or vending machine if the person has not been issued an annual license by the department or by a local health department that…

97.607 Pre-licensing inspection. (1) The department or a local health department granted agent status under s. 97.615 (2) may not grant a license to a person intending to operate a new hotel, tourist rooming house, bed and breakfast establishment, or vending machine commissary or…

97.61 Vending machine commissary outside the state. Foods, beverages and ingredients from commissaries outside the state may be sold within the state if such commissaries conform to the provisions of the food establishment sanitation rules of this state or to substantially equiva…

97.613 Fees. Except as provided in s. 97.615 (2) (d) and (e), the department shall promulgate rules that establish, for licenses issued under s. 97.605, license fees, pre-licensing inspection fees, reinspection fees, fees for operating without a license, late fees for untimely re…

97.615 (2) may issue a license for a bed and breakfast establishment required under this section at any time during the year. A license issued under this subdivision shall expire one year from the date of its issuance. 2. The holder of a license for a bed and breakfast establishm…

97.617 Application; lodging and vending. (1) An applicant for a license under this subchapter shall complete the application prepared by the department or the local health depart- May 22, 2026, are designated by NOTES. (Published 5-22-26) 97.617 FOOD, LODGING, RECREATION ment gra…

97.62 Health and safety; standard. Every hotel, tourist rooming house, bed and breakfast establishment, vending machine commissary and vending machine shall be operated and maintained with a strict regard to the public health and safety and in conformity with this subchapter and …

97.623 Hotel safety. (1) Every hotel with sleeping accommodations with more than 12 bedrooms above the first story shall, between the hours of 12 midnight and 6 a.m. provide a system of security personnel patrol, or of mechanical and electrical devices, or both, adequate, accordi…

97.625 Powers of the department and local health departments. (1) The department shall do all of the following: (a) Administer and enforce this subchapter, the rules promulgated under this subchapter and any other rules or laws relating to the public health and safety in hotels, …

97.627 Causing fires by tobacco smoking. (1) Any person who, by smoking, or attempting to light or to smoke cigarettes, cigars, pipes or tobacco, in any manner in which lighters or matches are employed, shall, in a careless, reckless or negligent May 22, 2026, are designated by N…

97.633 Hotelkeeper’s liability. (1) A hotelkeeper who complies with sub. (2) is not liable to a guest for loss of money, jewelry, precious metals or stones, personal ornaments or valuable papers which are not offered for safekeeping. (2) To secure exemption from liability the hot…

97.634 Hotelkeeper’s liability for baggage; limitation. Every guest and intended guest of any hotel upon delivering to the hotelkeeper any baggage or other property for safekeeping, elsewhere than in the room assigned to the guest, shall demand and the hotelkeeper shall give a ch…

97.635 Liability of hotelkeeper for loss of property by fire or theft; owner’s risk. A hotelkeeper is not liable for the loss of baggage or other property of a hotel guest by a fire unintentionally produced by the hotelkeeper. Every hotelkeeper is liable for loss of baggage or ot…