21 U.S.C. § 466: Imports

Summary

Imported slaughtered poultry and poultry products cannot enter the United States unless they are safe to eat, not spoiled or contaminated, and do not contain harmful dyes, chemicals, preservatives, or other bad ingredients. They must follow rules the Agriculture Secretary sets to make sure they meet U.S. food laws. If they meet those rules when they arrive, they are treated the same as U.S. poultry under U.S. food laws. The Agriculture Secretary can also make rules about destroying or sending back imports that are refused. The owner or receiver must pay any storage, moving, and handling fees for refused goods, and unpaid fees can become a lien on that person’s future imports. All imported poultry meant for food must meet U.S. levels for cleanliness, quality, correct species labeling, and chemical residues, and must come from facilities that provide the same level of protection for public health. The Agriculture Secretary can accept a foreign country’s standards as equal if that country gives scientific proof using risk methods the Secretary approves. The Secretary can also decide, on a scientific basis, that a foreign standard is not equal and explain that decision in writing if asked. Poultry that does not meet the standards will be kept out. The Secretary enforces this with random checks and testing, including sampling organs and fat at the foreign slaughter site using approved methods.

Title 21, §466

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(a)Compliance with standards and regulations; status after importation

No slaughtered poultry, or parts or products thereof, of any kind shall be imported into the United States unless they are healthful, wholesome, fit for human food, not adulterated, and contain no dye, chemical, preservative, or ingredient which renders them unhealthful, unwholesome, adulterated, or unfit for human food and unless they also comply with the rules and regulations made by the Secretary of Agriculture to assure that imported poultry or poultry products comply with the standards provided for in this chapter. All imported, slaughtered poultry, or parts or products thereof, shall after entry into the United States in compliance with such rules and regulations be deemed and treated as domestic slaughtered poultry, or parts or products thereof, within the meaning and subject to the provisions of this chapter and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act [21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.], and Acts amendatory of, supplemental to, or in substitution for such chapter and Act.

(b)Rules and regulations; destruction and exportation of refused imports

The Secretary of Agriculture is authorized to make rules and regulations to carry out the purposes of this section and in such rules and regulations the Secretary of Agriculture may prescribe the terms and conditions for the destruction of all slaughtered poultry, or parts or products thereof, offered for entry and refused admission into the United States unless such slaughtered poultry, or parts or products thereof, be exported by the consignee within the time fixed therefor in such rules and regulations.

(c)Storage, cartage and labor charges for imports refused admission

All charges for storage, cartage, and labor with respect to any product which is refused admission pursuant to this section shall be paid by the owner or consignee, and in default of such payment shall constitute a lien against any other products imported thereafter by or for such owner or consignee.

(d)Domestic standards and processing facilities applicable; enforcement

(1)Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all poultry, or parts or products of poultry, capable of use as human food offered for importation into the United States shall—

(A)be subject to inspection, sanitary, quality, species verification, and residue standards that achieve a level of sanitary protection equivalent to that achieved under United States standards; and

(B)have been processed in facilities and under conditions that achieve a level of sanitary protection equivalent to that achieved under United States standards.

(2)(A)The Secretary may treat as equivalent to a United States standard a standard of an exporting country described in paragraph (1) if the exporting country provides the Secretary with scientific evidence or other information, in accordance with risk assessment methodologies determined appropriate by the Secretary, to demonstrate that the standard of the exporting country achieves the level of sanitary protection achieved under the United States standard. For the purposes of this subsection, the term “sanitary protection” means protection to safeguard public health.

(B)The Secretary may—

(i)determine, on a scientific basis, that the standard of the exporting country does not achieve the level of protection that the Secretary considers appropriate; and

(ii)provide the basis for the determination in writing to the exporting country on request.

(3)Any such imported poultry article that does not meet such standards shall not be permitted entry into the United States.

(4)The Secretary shall enforce this subsection through—

(A)random inspections for such species verification and for residues; and

(B)random sampling and testing of internal organs and fat of carcasses for residues at the point of slaughter by the exporting country, in accordance with methods approved by the Secretary.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, referred to in subsec. (a), is act June 25, 1938, ch. 675, 52 Stat. 1040, which is classified generally to chapter 9 (§ 301 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 301 of this title and Tables.

Amendments

1994—Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 103–465, § 431(k)(1), amended par. (1) generally. Prior to amendment, par. (1) read as follows: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, except as provided in paragraph (2), all poultry, or parts or products thereof, capable of use as human food offered for importation into the United States shall— “(A) be subject to the same inspection, sanitary, quality, species verification, and residue standards applied to products produced in the United States; and “(B) have been processed in facilities and under conditions that are the same as those under which similar products are processed in the United States.” Subsec. (d)(2)(A). Pub. L. 103–465, § 431(k)(2)(A), amended subpar. (A) generally. Prior to amendment, subpar. (A) read as follows: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all poultry, or parts or products of poultry, capable of use as human food offered for importation into the United States from Canada and Mexico shall— “(i) comply with paragraph (1); or “(ii)(I) be subject to inspection, sanitary, quality, species verification, and residue standards that are equivalent to United States standards; and “(II) have been processed in facilities and under conditions that meet standards that are equivalent to United States standards.” Subsec. (d)(2)(B), (C). Pub. L. 103–465, § 431(k)(2)(B), (C), redesignated subpar. (C) as (B) and struck out former subpar. (B) which read as follows: “The Secretary may treat as equivalent to a United States standard a standard of Canada or Mexico described in subparagraph (A)(ii) if the exporting country provides the Secretary with scientific evidence or other information, in accordance with risk assessment methodologies agreed to by the Secretary and the exporting country, to demonstrate that the standard of the exporting country achieves the level of protection that the Secretary considers appropriate.” 1993—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 103–182, in par. (1), inserted “except as provided in paragraph (2),” before “all poultry” in introductory provisions, added par. (2), and redesignated former pars. (2) and (3) as (3) and (4), respectively. 1985—Par. (d). Pub. L. 99–198 added par. (d).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1994 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 103–465 effective, except as otherwise provided, on the date of entry into force of the World Trade Organization Agreement with respect to the United States (Jan. 1, 1995), see section 451 of Pub. L. 103–465, set out as an

Effective Date

note under section 3601 of Title 19, Customs Duties.

Effective Date

of 1985 Amendment Pub. L. 99–198, title XVII, § 1701(b), Dec. 23, 1985, 99 Stat. 1633, provided that: “The amendment made by this section [amending this section] shall become effective 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 1985].”

§466 Imports

Summary

Title 21, §466

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

Amendments

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Effective Date

Effective Date

Citations & Metadata