I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3546

To amend the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products Inspection Act to improve the safety of meat and poultry products by enhancing 

the ability of the Secretary of Agriculture to retrieve the history, use, 

and location of a meat or poultry product through a recordkeeping 

and audit system or registered identification, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 20, 2003

Ms. DEGETTE (for herself, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. STARK, and 

Mr. ENGLISH) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL

To amend the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry 

Products Inspection Act to improve the safety of meat 

and poultry products by enhancing the ability of the 

Secretary of Agriculture to retrieve the history, use, and 

location of a meat or poultry product through a recordkeeping and audit system or registered identification, 

and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Meat and Poultry 

3 Products Traceability and Safety Act of 2003’’. 

4 SEC. 2. TRACEABILITY OF LIVESTOCK AND POULTRY. 

5 (a) LIVESTOCK.—Title I of the Federal Meat Inspec6 tion Act (21 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by adding 

7 at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 25. TRACEABILITY OF LIVESTOCK, MEAT, AND MEAT 

9 PRODUCTS. 

10 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF TRACEABILITY.—In this sec11 tion, the term ‘traceability’ means the ability to retrieve 

12 the history, use, and location of an article through a rec13 ordkeeping and audit system or registered identification. 

14 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Cattle, sheep, swine, goats, 

16 and horses, mules, and other equines presented for 

17 slaughter for human food purposes, and the car18 casses or parts of carcasses and the meat and meat 

19 food products of those animals, shipped in interstate 

20 commerce shall be identified in a manner that en21 ables the Secretary to trace—

22 ‘‘(A) each animal to any premises or other 

23 location at which the animal was held at any 

24 time before slaughter; and 

25 ‘‘(B) each carcass or part of a carcass and 

26 meat and meat food product of such animals 
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1 forward from slaughter through processing and 

2 distribution to the ultimate consumer. 

3 ‘‘(2) TRACEABILITY SYSTEM.—The Secretary 

4 shall establish a traceability system for all stages of 

5 production, processing, and distribution of meat and 

6 meat food products that are produced through the 

7 slaughter of animals described in paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION OR RESTRICTION ON ENTRY.—

9 The Secretary may prohibit or restrict entry into any 

10 slaughtering establishment inspected under this Act of any 

11 cattle, sheep, swine, goats, or horses, mules, or other 

12 equines not identified as prescribed by the Secretary under 

13 subsection (b). 

14 ‘‘(d) RECORDS.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may require 

16 that each person, firm, and corporation required to 

17 identify livestock pursuant to subsection (b) main18 tain accurate records, as prescribed by the Sec19 retary, regarding the purchase, sale, and identifica20 tion of the livestock. 

21 ‘‘(2) ACCESS.—Each person, firm, and corpora22 tion described in paragraph (1) shall, at all reason23 able times, on notice by a duly authorized represent24 ative of the Secretary, allow the representative to ac25 cess to each place of business of the person, firm, or 
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1 corporation to examine and copy the records de2 scribed in paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(3) DURATION.—Each person, firm, and cor4 poration described in paragraph (1) shall maintain 

5 records required to be maintained under this sub6 section for such period of time as the Secretary pre7 scribes. 

8 ‘‘(e) FALSE INFORMATION.—No person, firm, or cor9 poration shall falsify or misrepresent to any other person, 

10 firm, or corporation, or to the Secretary, any information 

11 as to any premises at which any cattle, sheep, swine, 

12 goats, horses, mules, or other equines, or carcasses there13 of, were held. 

14 ‘‘(f) ALTERATION OR DESTRUCTION OF RECORDS.—

15 No person, firm, or corporation shall, without authoriza16 tion from the Secretary, alter, detach, or destroy any 

17 records or other means of identification prescribed by the 

18 Secretary for use in determining the premises at which 

19 were held any cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, 

20 or other equines, or the carcasses thereof.’’. 

21 (b) POULTRY.—The Poultry Products Inspection Act 

22 is amended by inserting after section 23 (21 U.S.C. 467e) 

23 the following: 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 23A. TRACEABILITY OF POULTRY AND POULTRY 

2 PRODUCTS. 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF TRACEABILITY.—In this sec4 tion, the term ‘traceability’ means the ability to retrieve 

5 the history, use, and location of an article through a rec6 ordkeeping and audit system or registered identification. 

7 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Poultry presented for 

9 slaughter for human food purposes and poultry 

10 products shipped in interstate commerce shall be 

11 identified in a manner that enables the Secretary to 

12 trace—

13 ‘‘(A) each animal to any premises or other 

14 location at which the animal was held at any 

15 time before slaughter; and 

16 ‘‘(B) each poultry product forward from 

17 slaughter through processing and distribution 

18 to the ultimate consumer. 

19 ‘‘(2) TRACEABILITY SYSTEM.—The Secretary 

20 shall establish a traceability system for all stages of 

21 production, processing, and distribution of poultry 

22 and poultry food products that are produced through 

23 the slaughter of animals described in paragraph (1). 

24 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION OR RESTRICTION ON ENTRY.—

25 The Secretary may prohibit or restrict entry into any 
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1 slaughtering establishment inspected under this Act of any 

2 poultry not identified as prescribed by the Secretary. 

3 ‘‘(d) RECORDS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may require 

5 that each person, firm, and corporation required to 

6 identify poultry pursuant to subsection (b) maintain 

7 accurate records, as prescribed by the Secretary, re8 garding the purchase, sale, and identification of the 

9 poultry. 

10 ‘‘(2) ACCESS.—Each person, firm, and corpora11 tion described in paragraph (1) shall, at all reason12 able times, on notice by a duly authorized represent13 ative of the Secretary, allow the representative to ac14 cess to each place of business of the person, firm, or 

15 corporation to examine and copy the records de16 scribed in paragraph (1). 

17 ‘‘(3) DURATION.—Each person, firm, and cor18 poration described in paragraph (1) shall maintain 

19 records required to be maintained under this sub20 section for such period of time as the Secretary pre21 scribes. 

22 ‘‘(e) FALSE INFORMATION.—No person, firm, or cor23 poration shall falsify or misrepresent to any other person, 

24 firm, or corporation, or to the Secretary, any information 
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1 as to any premises at which any poultry, or carcasses 

2 thereof, were held. 

3 ‘‘(f) ALTERATION OR DESTRUCTION OF RECORDS.—

4 No person, firm, or corporation shall, without authoriza5 tion from the Secretary, alter, detach, or destroy any 

6 records or other means of identification prescribed by the 

7 Secretary for use in determining the premises at which 

8 were held any poultry or the carcasses thereof.’’.

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