An Act to clarify and otherwise amend the Meat Inspection Act, to provide for cooperation with appropriate State agencies with respect to State meat inspection programs, and for other purposes
PL 90-201 (H.R.12144), enacted 12/15/1967

584 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
December 15, 1967 
[H. R. 12144] 
Public Law 90-201 
AN ACT 
To clarify and otherwise amend tlie Meat Inspection Act, to provide for 
cooperation witli appropriate State agencies witli respect to State meat in-
spection programs, and for otlier purposes. 
Wholesome Meat 
Act. 
52 Stat. 1235. 
Federal Meat 
Inspection Act; 
designation; 
amendment. 
Definitions. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of RepresentaMve^ of the 
United States of America in Congress assemhled^ That this Act may 
be cited as the AVholesome Meat Act and that the provisions appear-
ing under the subheading "FOR MEAT INSPECTION :" under the heading 
"BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY" in the Act approved March 4, 1907, 
entitled "An Act making appropriations for the Department of Agri-
culture for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred 
and eight" (34 Stat. 1260-1265, as amended; 21 IT.S.C. 71-91), are 
hereby designated as the "Federal Meat Inspection Act"; the first 
twenty paragraphs thereof are hereby designated, respectively, as 
sections 3 through 22, and the twenty-first and twenty-second para-
graphs thereof as section 23; and said sections 3 through 23 are here-
by designated as "TITLE I—INSPECTION REQUIREMENTS; 
ADULTERATION AND MISBRANDING". 
SEC. 2. The Federal Meat Inspection Act is hereby amended by 
adding, in title I, new sections 1 and 2 reading, respectively, as fol-
lows : 
"SECTION 1. As u.sed in this Act, except as otherwise specified, the 
following terms shall have the meanings stated below: 
"(a) The term 'Secretary' means the Secretary of Agriculture of 
the United States or his delegate. 
"(b) The term 'firm' means any partnership, association, or other 
unincorporated business organization. 
"(c) The term 'meat broker' means any person, firm, or corpora-
tion engaged in the business of buying or selling carcasses, parts 6f 
carcasses, meat, or meat food products of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, 
horses, mules, or other equines on commission, or otherwise negotiat-
ing purchases or sales of such articles other than for his own account 
or as an employee of another person, firm, or corporation. 
"(d) The term 'renderer' means any person, firm, or corporation 
engaged in the business of rendering carcasses or parts or products 
of the carcasses, of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, or other 
equines, except rendering conducted under inspection or exemption 
under title I of this Act. 
"(e) The term 'animal food manufacturer' means any person, firm, 
or corporation engaged in the business of manufacturing or processing 
animal food derived wholly or in part from carcasses, or parts or 
products of the carcasses, of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, or 
other equines. 
"(f) The term 'State' means any State of the L^nited States and 
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 
"(g) The term 'Territory' means Guam, the Virgin Islands of the 
LTnited States, American Samoa, and any other territory or possession 
of the United States, excluding the Canal Zone. 
"(h) The term 'commerce" means commerce between any State, any 
Territory, or the District of Columbia, and any place outside thereof; 
or within any Territory not organized with a legislative body, or the 
District of Columbia. 
"(i) The term 'United States' means the States, the District of 
Columbia, and the Territories of the L'^nited States. 
"(j) The term 'meat food product' means any product capable of 
use as human food which is made wholly or in part from any meat or 
other portion of the carcass of any cattle, sheep, swine, or goats, 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
585 
excepting products which contain meat or other portions of such car-
casses only in a relatively small proportion or historically have not been 
considered by consumers as products of the meat food industry, and 
which are exempted from definition as a meat food product by the 
Secretary under such conditions as he may prescribe to assure that the 
meat or other portions of such carcasses contained in such product are 
not adulterated and that such products are not represented as meat 
food products. This term as applied to food products of equines shall 
have a meaning comparable to that provided in this paragraph with 
respect to cattle, sheep, swine, and goats. 
•"(k) The term 'capable of use as human food' shall apply to any 
carcass, or part or product of a carcass, of any animal, unless it is de-
natured or otherwise identified as required by regulations prescribed 
by the Secretary to deter its use as human food, or it is naturally 
inedible by humans. 
"(1) The term 'prepared' means slaughtered, canned, salted, ren-
dered, boned, cut up, or otherwise manufactured or processed. 
"(m) The term 'adulterated' shall apply to any carcass, part there-
of, meat or meat food product under one or more of the following 
circumstances: 
"(1) if it bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious sub-
stance which may render it injurious to health; but in case the 
substance is not an added substance, such article shall not be con-
sidered adulterated under this clause if the quantity of such sub-
stance in or on such article 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 otherwise) any added poi-
sonous or added deleterious substance (other than one wliich is (i) 
a pesticide chemical in or on a raw agricultural commodity; (ii) 
a food additive; or (iii) a color additive) which may, in the judg-
ment of the Secretary, make such article 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 section 408 of the Federal Food, 
Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 
"(C) if it bears or contains any food additive w^hich is unsafe 
within the meaning of section 409 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 
Cosmetic Act, 
, 
.
.
.
. 
sJus'caT' 
"(D) if it bears or contains any color additive which is unsafe 
within the meaning of section 706 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 
Cosmetic Act: Provided^ That an article which is not adulterated 
2I use are" 
under clause (B), (C),or (D) shall nevertheless be deemed adul-
terated if use of the pesticide chemical, food additive, or color 
additive in or on such article is prohibited by regulations of the 
Secretary in establishments at which inspection is maintained 
under title I of this Act; 
"(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 prepared, packed, or held under insanitary 
conditions whereby it may have become contaminated with filth, 
or whereby it may have been rendered injurious to health; 
"(5) if it is, in whole or in part, the product of an animal 
wliich 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 
68 Stat. 5 11. 
21 use 346a. 
586 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
exemption in elfect pursuant to section 409 of tlie Federal Food, 
2ius^C348f' 
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 sub-
stituted, wholly or in j)art 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 ap-
pear better or of greater value than it is; or 
" (9) If it is margarine containing animal fat and any of the raw 
material used therein consisted in whole or in part of any filthy, 
putrid, or decomposed substance. 
"Misbranded.*' 
" ^j^^ 'P}^Q term 'misbranded" shall apply to any carcass, part thereof, 
meat or meat food 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 food; 
"(3) if it is an imitation of another food, unless its label bears, 
in type of uniform size and prominence, the word 'imitation' and 
immediately thereafter, the name of the food imitated; 
"(4) if its container is so made, formed, or filled as to be mis-
leading ; 
"(5) if in a package or other container unless it bears a label 
showing (A) the name and place of business of the manufacturer, 
packer, or distributor; and (B) an accurate statement of the 
quantity of the contents in terms of weight, measure, or numerical 
count: Provided, 
That under clause (B) of this subparagraph 
(5), reasonable variations may be permitted, and exemptions as 
to small packages may be established, by regulations prescribed 
by the Secretary; 
"(6) if any word, statement, or other information required 
by or under authority of this Act to appear on the label or other 
labeling is not prominently placed thereon with such conspicuous-
ness (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 food for which 
a definition and standard of identity or composition has been 
prescribed by regulations of the Secretary under section 7 of 
Post, p. 588. 
^j^jg ^Qj^ unless (A) it conforms to such definition and standard, 
and (B) its label bears the name of the food specified in the 
definition and standard and, insofar as may be required by such 
regulations, the common names of optional ingredients (other 
than spices, flavoring, and coloring) present in such food; 
"(8) if it purports to be or is represented as a food for which 
a standard or standards of fill of container have been prescribed 
by regulations of the Secretary under section 7 of this Act, 
and it falls below the standard of fill of container applicable 
thereto, unless its label bears, in such manner and form as such 
regulations specify, a statement that it falls below such standard; 
"(9) if it is not subject to the provisions of subparagraph 
(7), unless its label bears (A) the common or usual name of the 
food, 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, 
when authorized by the Secretary, be designated as spices, flavor-
ings, and colorings without naming each: Provided, That, to the 
extent that compliance with the requirements of clause (B) of 
this subparagraph (9) is impracticable, or results in deception or 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
587 
unfair competition, exemptions shall be established by regulations 
promulgated by the Secretary; 
"(10) If it purports to be or is represented for special dietary 
uses, unless its label bears such information concerning its vita-
min, mineral, and other dietary properties as the Secretary, after 
consultation with the Secretary of Health, Education, and Wel-
fare, determines to be, and by regulations prescribes as, necessary 
in order fully to inform purchasers as to its value for such uses; 
"(11) If it bears or contains any artificial flavoring, artificial 
coloring, or chemical preservative, unless it bears labeling stating 
that fact: Provided, That, to the extent that compliance with the 
requirements of this subparagraph (11) is impracticable, exemp-
tions shall be established by regulations promulgated by the Secre-
tary; or 
"(12) If it fails to bear, directly thereon or on its container, as 
the Secretary may by regulations prescribe, the inspection legend 
and, unrestricted by any of the foregoing, such other information 
as the Secretary may require in such regulations 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 
article in a wholesome condition. 
" (o) The term 'label' means a display of written, printed, or graphic 
Definitions, 
matter upon the immediate container (not including package liners) 
of any article. 
"(p) The term 'labeling' means all labels and other written, printed, 
or graphic matter (1) upon any article or any of its containers or 
wrappers, or (2) accompanying such article. 
"(q) The term 'Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act' means the 
Act so entitled, approved June 25, 1938 (52 Stat. 1040), and Acts 
21 use 301. 
amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto. 
"(r) The terms 'pesticide chemical', 'food additive', 'color additive', 
and 'raw agricultural commodity' shall have the same meanings for 
purposes of this Act as under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic 
Act. 
"(s) The term 'official mark' means the official inspection legend or 
any other symbol prescribed by regulations of the Secretary to iden-
tify the status of any article or animal under this Act. 
"(t) The term 'official inspection legend' means any symbol pre-
scribed by regulations of the Secretary showing that an article was 
inspected and passed in accordance with this Act. 
"(u) The term 'official certificate' means any certificate prescribed 
by regulations of the Secretary for issuance by an inspector or other 
person performing official functions under this Act. 
"(v) The term 'official device' means any device prescribed or 
authorized by the Secretary for use in applying any official mark." 
SEC. 2. Meat and meat food products are an important source of 
the Nation's total supply of food. They are consumed throughout the 
Nation and the major portion thereof moves in interstate or foreign 
commerce. It is essential in the public interest that the health and wel-
fare of consumers be protected by assuring that meat and meat food 
|~iroducts distributed to them are wholesome, not adulterated, and 
properly marked, labeled, and packaged. Unwholesome, adulterated, 
or misbranded meat or meat food products impair the effective regu-
lation of meat and meat food products in interstate or foreign com-
merce, are injurious to the public welfare, destroy markets for whole-
some, not adulterated, and properly labeled and packaged meat and 
meat food products, and result in sundry losses to livestock producers 
and processors of meat and meat food products, as well as injury to 
consumers. The unwholesome, adulterated, mislabeled, or deceptively 
588 
PUBLIC LA\^ 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
packaged articles can be sold at lower prices and compete unfairly 
with the wholesome, not adulterated, and properly labeled and pack-
aged articles, to the detriment of consumers and the public generally. 
It is hereby found that all articles and animals which are regulated 
under this Act are either in interstate or foreign commerce or sub-
stantially affect such commerce, and that regulation by the Secretary 
and cooperation by the States and other jurisdictions as contemplated 
by this Act are appropriate to prevent and eliminate burdens upon 
such commerce, to effectively regulate such commerce, and to protect 
the health and ^yelfare of consumers. 
SEC. 3. Said Act is hereby further amended by— 
(a) deleting the phrase "interstate or foreign" wherever it ap-
Ante, p. 584. 
pears in sections 3 through 23 of title I of said Act; and 
(b) deleting in section 3 of said Act (21 U.S.C. 71) the phrase 
"the Secretary of Agriculture, at his discretion, may" and insert-
ing in lieu thereof the words "the Secretary shall"' and deleting 
the words "of Agriculture" wherever they appear after the word 
"Secretary" thereafter in title 1 of the Act. 
34 Stat. 1260. 
c^j^^ ^ Sectlou 4 of Said Act (21 U.S.C. 72) is hereby amended by 
deleting the phrases "for human consumption" and "for transporta-
tion or sale", and by inserting after the word "commerce" the phrase 
"which are capable of use as human food". 
SEC. 5. Secticm 5 of said Act (21 U.S.C. 73) is hereby amended by 
adding at the end thereof the following: "The Secretary may limit 
the entry of carcasses, parts of carcasses, meat and meat food products, 
and other materials into any establishment at which inspection under 
this title is maintained, under such conditions as he may prescribe to 
assure that allowing the entry of such articles into such inspected 
establishments will be consistent with the purposes of this Act." 
Federal inspec- 
g^^^ g
^ Sectlou 7 of Said Act (21 U.S.C. 75) is hereby amended by— 
tion labels. 
/
\
n
i
- 
i 
• • 
i 
n 
T 
n TI 
CC 
-I 
Standards. 
(a) deletmg the provisions thereof reading as folJows: , and 
no such meat or meat food products shall be sold or offered for 
sale by any person, firm, or corporation in interstate or foreign 
commerce under any false or deceptive name; but established trade 
name or names which are usual to such products and which are 
not false and deceptive and which shall be approved by the Sec-
retary are permitted"; 
(b) designating the remaining provisions as paragraph ( a ) ; 
and 
(c) adding at the end of said section the following provisions 
as paragraphs (b) through (e), respectively: 
"(b) All carcasses, parts of carcasses, meat and meat food prod-
ucts inspected at any establishment under the authority of this title 
and found to be not adulterated, shall at the time they leave the es-
tablishment bear, in distinctly legible form, directly thereon or on 
their containers, as the Secretary may require, the information re-
Ante. p. 586. 
quired under paragraph (n) of section 1 of this Act. 
"(c) The Secretary, whenever he determines such action is necessary 
for the protection of the public, may prescribe : (1) the styles and sizes 
of type to be used with respect to material required to be incorporated 
in labeling to avoid false or misleading labeling in marketing and 
labeling any articles or animals subject to this title or title I I of this 
Post, p. 593. 
Act; (2) definitions and standards of identity or composition for 
articles subject to this title and standards of fill of container for such 
articles not inconsistent with any such standards established under the 
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and there shall be consultation 
between the Secretary and the Secretary of Health, Education, and 
Welfare prior to the issuance of such standards under either Act relat-
ing to articles subject to this Act to avoid inconsistency in such stand-
52 Stat. 1040. 
21 u s e 301. 
Post, p. 595. 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
589 
ards and possible impairment of the coordinated effective administra-
tion of these Acts, There shall also be consultation between the Secre-
tary and an appropriate advisory committee provided for in section 
301 of this Act, prior to the issuance of such standards under this Act, 
to avoid, insofar as feasible, inconsistency between Federal and State 
standards. 
"(d) No article subject to this title shall be sold or offered for sale 
by any person, firm, or corporation, in commerce, under any name or 
other marking or labeling which is false or misleading, or in any con-
tainer of a misleading form or size, but established trade names and 
other marking and labeling and containers which are not false or mis-
leading and which are approved by the Secretary are permitted. 
"(e) If the Secretary has reason to believe that any marking or 
Judicial review. 
labeling or the size or form of any container in use or proposed for 
use with respect to any article subject to this title is false or mislead-
ing in any particular, he may direct that such use be withheld unless 
the marking, labeling, x)r container is modified in such manner as 
he may prescribe so that it will not be false or misleading. If the 
person, firm, or corporation using or proposing to use the marking, 
labeling or container does not accept the determination of the Secre-
tary, such person, firm, or corporation may request a hearing, but 
the use of the marking, labeling, or container shall, if the Secretary 
so directs, be withheld pending hearing and final determination by 
the Secretary. Any such determination by the Secretary shall be 
conclusive unless, within thirty days after receipt of notice of such 
final determination, the person, firm, or corporation adversely affected 
thereby appeals to the United States court of appeals for the circuit 
in which such person, firm, or corporation has its principal place 
of business or to the United States Court of Appeals for the District 
of Columbia Circuit. The provisions of section 204 of the Packers 
and Stockyards Act, 1921 (42 Stat. 162, as amended; 7 U.S.C. 194), 
^2 stat. 944. 
shall be applicable to appeals taken under this section." 
SEC. 7. Section 10 of said Act (21 U.S.C. 78) is hereby amended 
to read: 
"SEC. 10. No person, firm, or corporation shall, with respect to any 
cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, or other equines, or any 
carcasses, parts of carcasses, meat or meat food products of any such 
animals— 
"(a) slaughter any such animals or prepare any such articles 
slaughtering of 
w^hich are capable of use as human food at any establishment pre- ^"^"^ ^
" 
paring any such articles for commerce, except in compliance with 
the requirements of this Act; 
"(b) sell, transport, offer for sale or transportation, or receive 
for transportation, in commerce, (1) any such articles which (A) 
are capable of use as human food and (B) are adulterated or mis-
branded at the time of such sale, transportation, offer for sale or 
transportation, or receipt for transportation; or (2) any articles 
required to be inspected under this title unless they have been so 
inspected and passed; 
"(c) do, with respect to any such articles which are capable of 
use as human food, any act while they are being transported in 
commerce or held for sale after such transportation, which is 
intended to cause or has the effect of causing such articles to be 
adulterated or misbranded." 
SEC. 8. Section 11 of said Act (21 U.S.C. 79) is hereby amended to 
counterfeit or 
T 
J. 
TT 
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unauthorized use 
read as loilows: 
o
f labeis. 
"SEC. 11. (a) No brand manufacturer, printer, or other person, 
firm, or corporation shall cast, print, lithograph, or otherwise make 
any device containing any official mark or simulation thereof, or any 
Sale and trans-
portation of meat. 
590 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
Equine meat, 
identification. 
Importation of 
meat. 
52 Stat. 1040. 
21 u s e 301. 
label bearing any such mark or simulation, or any form of official 
certificate or simulation thereof, except as authorized by the Secretary. 
" (b) Xo person, firm, or corporation shall— 
"(1) forge any official device, mark, or certificate; 
"(2) without authorization from the Secretary use any official 
device, mark, or certificate, or simulation thereof, or alter, detach, 
deface, or destroy any official device, mark, or certificate; 
"(3) contrary to the regulations prescribed by the Secretary, 
fail to use, or to detach, deface, or destroy any official device, 
mark, or certificate; 
"(4) knowingly possess, without promptly notifying the Sec-
retary or his representative, any official device or any counterfeit, 
simulated, forged, or improperly altered official certificate or any 
device or label or any carcass of any animal, or part or product 
thereof, bearing any counterfeit, simulated, forged, or improperly 
altered official mark; 
"(5) knowingly make any false statement in any shipper's cer-
tificate or other nonofficial or official certificate provided for in 
the regulations prescribed by the Secretary; or 
"(6) knowingly represent that any article has been inspected 
and passed, or exempted, under this Act when, in fact, it has, 
respectively, not been so inspected and passed, or exempted." 
SEC. 9. The present provisions of section 19 of said Act (21 U.S.C. 
87) are hereby deleted and the following new provisions are substi-
tuted therefor: 
"SEC. 19. No person, firm, or corporation shall sell, transport, offer 
for sale or transportation, or receive for transportation, in commerce, 
any carcasses of horses, mules, or other equines or parts of such car-
casses, or the meat or meat food products thereof, unless they are 
plainly and conspicuously marked or labeled or otherwise identified 
as required by regulations prescribed by the Secretary to show the 
kinds of animals from which they were derived. When required by the 
Secretary, with respect to establishments at which inspection is main-
tained under this title, such animals and their carcasses, parts thereof, 
meat and meat food products shall be prepared in establishments sepa-
rate from those in which cattle, sheep, swine, or goats are slaughtered 
or their carcasses, parts thereof, meat or meat food products are 
prepared." 
SEC. 10. The present provisions of section 20 of said Act (21 U.S.C. 
88) are hereby deleted and the following new provisions are sub-
stituted therefor: 
"SEC. 20. (a) No carcasses, parts of carcasses, meat or meat food 
products of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, or other equines 
which are capable of use as human food, shall be imported into the 
United States if such articles are adulterated or misbranded and 
unless they comply with all the inspection, building construction 
standards, and all other provisions of this Act and regulations issued 
thereunder applicable to such articles in commerce within the United 
States. All such imported articles shall, upon entry into the United 
States, be deemed and treated as domestic articles subject to the other 
provisions of this Act and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act: 
Provided^ That they shall be marked and labeled as required by such 
regulations for imported articles: Provided further, That nothing in 
this section shall apply to any individual who purchases meat or meat 
products outside the United States for his own consumption except 
that the total amount of such meat or meat products shall not exceed 
fifty pounds. 
"(b) The Secretary may prescribe the terms and conditions for the 
destruction of all such articles which are imported contrary to this 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
591 
section, unless (1) they are exported by the consignee within the time 
fixed therefor by the Secretary, or (2) in the case of articles which 
are not in compliance with the Act solely because of misbranding, 
such articles are brought into compliance with the Act under super-
vision of authorized representatives of the Secretary. 
"(c) All charges for storage, cartage, and labor with respect to any 
article which is imported contrary to this section shall be paid by the 
owner or consignee, and in default of such payment shall constitute 
a lien against such article and any other article thereafter imported 
under this Act by or for such owner or consignee. 
"(d) The knowing importation of any article contrary to this sec-
tion is prohibited. 
"(e) Not later than March 1 of each year the Secretary shall sub- resTk.na\°co°m-" 
mit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Kepresentatives mittees. 
and the Committee on Agriculture and Forestry of the Senate a com-
prehensive and detailed written report with respect to the administra-
tion of this section during the immediately preceding calendar year. 
Such report shall include, but shall not be limited to— 
" (1) a certification by the Secretary that foreign plants export-
ing carcasses or meat or meat products referred to in subsection 
(a) of this section have complied with requirements at least equal 
to all the inspection, building construction standards, and all 
other provisions of this Act and regulations issued thereunder; 
" (2) the names and locations of plants authorized or permitted 
to have imported into the United States therefrom carcasses or 
meat or meat products referred to in subsection (a) of this 
section; 
"(3) the number of inspectors employed by the Department of 
Agriculture in the calendar year concerned w^ho were assigned 
to inspect plants referred to in paragraph (e) (2) hereof and the 
frequency with which each such plant was inspected by such 
inspectors; 
"(4) the number of inspectors licensed by each country from 
which any imports subject to the provisions of this section were 
imported who w-ere assigned, during the calendar year concerned, 
to inspect such imports and the facilities in which such imports 
were handled and the frequency and effectiveness of such inspec-
tions; and 
"(5) the total volume of carcasses or meat or meat products 
referred to in subsection (a) of this section which was imported 
into the United States during the calendar year concerned from 
each country, including a separate itemization of the volume of 
each major category of such imports from each country during 
such year, and a detailed report of rejections of plants and prod-
ucts because of failure to meet appropriate standards prescribed 
by this Act." 
SEC. 11. Section 23 of said Act is hereby amended to read as follows: 
inspection ex-
"SEC. 23. (a) The provisions of this title requiring inspection of the ^'"P*^""^-
slaughter of animals and the preparation of the carcasses, parts there-
of, meat and meat food products at establishments conducting such 
operations for commerce shall not apply to the slaughtering by any 
person of animals of his own raising, and the preparation by him 
and transportation in commerce of the carcasses, parts thereof, meat 
and meat food products of such animals exclusively for use by him 
and members of his household and his nonpaying guests and employ-
ees; nor to the custom slaughter by any person, firm, or corporation 
of cattle, sheep, swine or goats delivered by the owner thereof for such 
slaughter, and the preparation by such slaughterer and transportation 
in commerce of the carcasses, parts thereof, meat and meat food prod-
85-622 0-68—40 
592 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
nets of such finimals, exclusively for use, in the household of such 
owner, by him and members of his household and his nonpaying guests 
and employees: Provided, That such custom slaughterer does not en-
gage in the business of buying or selling any carcasses, parts of car-
casses, meat or meat food products of any cattle, sheep, swine, goats 
or equines, capable of use as human food. 
"(b) The Secretary may, under such sanitary conditions as he may 
by regulations prescribe, exempt from the inspection requirements of 
this title the slaughter of animals, and the preparation of carcasses, 
parts thereof, meat and meat food products, by any person, firm, or 
corporation in any Territory not organized with a legislative body 
solely for distribution within such Territory when the Secretary de-
termines that it is impracticable to provide such inspection within the 
limits of funds appropriated for administration of this Act and that 
such exemption will othenvise facilitate enforcement of this Act. The 
Secretary may refuse, withdraw, or modify any exemption under this 
paragraph (b) in his discretion whenever he determines such action is 
necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Act. 
" (c) The adulteration and misbranding provisions of this title, other 
than the requirement of the inspection legend, shall apply to articles 
which are exempted from inspection or not required to be inspected 
under this section." 
SEC. 12. Said Act is hereby further amended by: 
(a) deleting the phrase "cattle, sheep, swine, and goats'" and 
the phrase "cattle, sheep, swine, or goats" wherever they appear 
in title I of the Act and substituting therefor, respectively, the 
phrase "cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, and other 
equines" and the phrase "cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, 
or other equines"; 
(b) in sections 3 and 4 (21 U.S.C. 71, 72), deleting the phrase 
"unsound, unhealthful, unwholesome, or otherwise unfit for human 
food" each time it appears and inserting in lieu thereof the word 
"adulterated"; 
(c) in section 4 (21 U.S.C. 72), deleting the phrase "sound, 
healthful, wholesome, and fit for human food" and inserting in 
lieu thereof the phrase "not adulterated"; 
(d) in section 4 (21 U.S.C. 72), deleting the phrase "unsound, 
unhealthful, unwholesome, or in any way unfit for human food" 
and inserting in lieu thereof the word "adulterated"; 
(e) in section 6 (21 U.S.C. 74), deleting the phrase "sound, 
healthful, and wholesome, and which contain no dyes, chemicals, 
preservatives, or ingredients which render such meat or meat food 
products unsound, unhealthful, unwholesome, or unfit for human 
food" and inserting in lieu thereof the phrase "not adulterated", 
and deleting the phrase "unsound, unhealthful, and unwholesome, 
or which contain dyes, chemicals, preservatives, or ingredients 
which render such meat or meat food products unsound, unhealth-
ful, unwholesome, or unfit for human food" and inserting in lieu 
thereof the word "adulterated"; 
(f) in section 8 (21 U.S.C. 76), deleting the phrase "unclean, 
unsound, unhealthful, unwholesome, or otherwise unfit for human 
food" and inserting in lieu thereof the word "adulterated"; 
(g) in section 17 (21 U.S.C. 85), deleting the phrase "or goat 
meat, being the meat of animals killed after the passage of this 
Act, or except as hereinbefore provided" and substituting therefor 
the phrase "goat or equine meat"; 
(h) in section 18 (21 U.S.C. 86), deleting the phrase "sound 
and wholesome."; and 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
593 
(i) in section 21 (21 U.S.C. 89), deleting the phrase "sound, 
healthful, wholesome, and fit for human food, and to contain no 
dyes, chemicals, preservatives, or ingredients which render such 
meat food product unsound, unhealthful, unwholesome, or unfit 
for human food; and to have been prepared under proper sani-
tary conditions, hereinbefore provided for" and inserting in lieu 
thereof the phrase "not adulterated". 
SEC. 13. Said Act is herebj^ further amended by adding at the end 
thereof the following new section in title I : 
"SEC. 24. The Secretary may by regulations prescribe conditions 
under which carcasses, parts of carcasses, meat, and meat food products 
of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, or other equines, capable 
of use as human food, shall be stored or otherwise handled by any 
person, firm, or corporation engaged in the business of buying, selling, 
freezing, storing, or transporting, in or for commerce, or importing, 
such articles, whenever the Secretary deems such action necessary to 
assure that such articles will not be adulterated or misbranded when 
delivered to the consumer. Violation of any such regulation is pro-
hibited. However, such regulations shall not apply to the storage or 
handling of such articles at any retail store or other establishment in 
any State or organized Territory that would be subject to this section 
only because of purchases in commerce, if the storage and handling 
of such articles at such establishment is regulated under the laws of 
the State or Territory in which such establishment is located, in a 
manner which the Secretary, after consultation with the appropriate 
advisory committee provided for in section 301 of this Act, determines 
is adequate to effectuate the purposes of this section." 
SEC. 14. Said Act is hereby further amended by adding after 
title I thereof, the following new sections as: 
"TITLE 
II—MEAT 
PROCESSORS 
AND RELATED 
INDUSTRIES 
"SEC. 201. Inspection shall not be provided under title I of this 
Act at any establishment for the slaughter of cattle, sheep, swine, 
goats, horses, mules, or other equines, or the preparation of any car-
casses or parts or products of such animals, which are not intended 
for use as human food, but such articles shall, prior to their offer 
for sale or transportation in commerce, unless naturally inedible by 
humans, be denatured or otherwise identified as prescribed by regula-
tions of the Secretary to deter their use for human food. No person, 
firm, or corporation shall buy, sell, transport, or offer for sale or 
transportation, or receive for transportation, in commerce, or import, 
any carcasses, parts thereof, meat or meat food products of any such 
animals, which are not intended for use as human food unless they are 
denatured or otherwise identified as required by the regulations of 
the Secretary or are naturally inedible by humans. 
"SEC. 202. (a) The following classes of persons, firms, and corpora-
tions shall keep such records as will fully and correctly disclose all 
transactions involved in their businesses; and all persons, firms, and 
corporations subject to such requirements shall, at all reasonable times, 
upon notice by a duly authorized representative of the Secretary, 
afford such representative access to their places of business and op-
portunity to examine the facilities, inventory, and records thereof, to 
copy all such records, and to take reasonable samples of their inven-
tory upon payment of the fair market value therefor— 
"(1) An;^ persons, firms, or corporations that engage, for 
commerce, in the business of slaughtering any cattle, sheep, 
swine, goats, horses, mules, or other equines, or preparing, freez-
Storage or han-
dling regulations. 
Post, p. 595. 
Meat inedible by 
humans, identifi-
cation. 
Records, mainte-
nance and access. 
594 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
ing, packaging, or labeling any carcasses, or parts or products of 
carcasses, of any such animals, for use as human food or animal 
food; 
"(2) Any persons, firms, or corporations that engage in the 
business of buying or selling (as meat brokers, wholesalers or 
otherwise), or transporting in commerce, or storing in or for 
commerce, or importing, any carcasses, or parts or products of 
carcasses, of any such animals; 
"(3) Any persons, firms, or corporations that engage in busi-
ness, in or for commerce, as renderers, or engage in the business of 
buying, selling, or transporting, in commerce, or importing, any 
dead, dying, disabled, or diseased cattle, sheep, swine, goats, 
horses, mules, or other equines, or parts of the carcasses oi any 
such animals that died otherwise than by slaughter. 
"(b) Any record required to be maintained by this section shall be 
maintained for such period of time as the Secretary may by regulations 
prescribe. 
Diseased or 
"SEC. 203. No persou, firm, or corporation shall engage in business, 
^Regit'traUon o
f in or for commerce, as a meat broker, renderer, or animal food manu-
meat brokers, etc, facturer, or engage in business in commerce as a wholesaler of any 
carcasses, or parts or products of the carcasses, of any cattle, sheep, 
swine, goats, horses, mules, or other equines, whether intended for 
human food or other purposes, or engage in business as a public ware-
houseman storing any such articles in or for commerce, or engage in 
the business of buying, selling, or transporting in commerce, or im-
porting, any dead, dying, disabled, or diseased animals of the speci-
fied kinds, or parts of the carcasses of any such animals that died 
otherwise than by slaughter, unless, when required by regulations of 
the Secretary, he has registered with the Secretary his name, and the 
address of each place of business at which, and all trade names under 
which, he conducts such business. 
"SEC. 204. No person, firm, or corporation engaged in the business of 
buying, selling, or transporting in commerce, or importing, dead, 
dying, disabled, or diseased animals, or any parts of the carcasses of 
any animals that died otherwise than by slaughter, shall buy, sell, 
transport, offer for sale or transportation, or receive for transporta-
tion, in commerce, or import, any dead, dying, disabled, or diseased 
cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules or other equines, or parts of 
the carcasses of any such animals that died otherwise than by 
slaughter, unless such transaction, transportation or importation is 
made in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may pre-
scribe to assure that such animals, or the unwholesome parts or prod-
ucts thereof, will be prevented from being used for human food 
purposes. 
"SEC. 205. The authority conferred on the Secretary by section 202, 
203, or 204 of this title with respect to persons, firms, and corporations 
engaged in the specified kinds of business in or for commerce may be 
exercised with respect to persons, firms, or corporations engaged, in 
any State or organized Territory, in such kinds of business but not in 
or for commerce, whenever the Secretary determines, after consulta-
tion with an appropriate advisory committee provided for in section 
301 of this Act, that the State or Territory does not have at least equal 
authority under its laws or such authority is not exercised in a manner 
to effectuate the purposes of this Act including the State providing for 
the Secretary or his representative being afforded access to such places 
of business and the facilities, inventories, and records thereof, and the 
taking of reasonable samples, where he determines necessary in carry-
ing out his responsibilities under this Act; and in such case the provi-
sions of section 202, 203, or 204, respectively, shall apply to such 
Post, 
p. 595. 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
595 
persons, firms, and corporations to the same extent and in the same 
manner as if they were engaged in such business in or for conmierce 
and the transactions involved were in commerce.'' 
SEG. 15. Said Act is hereby further amended by adding after title I I 
thereof, the following new section as: 
"TITLE III—FEDERAL AND STATE COOPERATION 
"SEC. 301. (a) It is the policy of the Congress to protect the con-
suming public from meat and meat food products that are adulterated 
or misbranded and to assist in efforts by State and other Government 
agencies to accomplish this objective. In furtherance of this policy— 
" (1) The Secretary is authorized, whenever he determines that 
it would effectuate the purposes of this Act, to cooperate with the 
appropriate State agency in developing and administering a State 
meat inspection program in any State which has enacted a State 
meat inspection law that imposes mandatory ante mortem and 
post mortem inspection, reinspection and sanitation requirements 
that are at least equal to those under title I of this Act, 
^"'^' P- ^84. 
with respect to all or certain classes of persons engaged in the 
State in slaughtering cattle, sheep, swine, goats, or equines, or pre-
paring the carcasses, parts thereof, meat or meat food products, 
of any such animals for use as human food solely for distribution 
within such State. 
"(2) The Secretary is further authorized, whenever he de-
termines that it would effectuate the purposes of this Act, to co-
operate with appropriate State agencies in developing and 
administering State programs under State laws containing author-
ities at least equal to those provided in title I I of this Act; and 
^"'^' P- S^^. 
to cooperate with other agencies of the United States in carrying 
out any provisions of this Act. 
"(3) Cooperation with State agencies under this section may 
include furnishing to the appropriate State agency (i) advisory 
assistance in planning and otherwise developing an adequate State 
program under the State law; and (ii) technical and laboratory 
assistance and training (including necessary curricular and in-
structional materials and equipment), and financial and other 
aid for administration of such a program. The amount to be con-
tributed to any State by the Secretary under this section from 
Federal funds for any year shall not exceed 50 per centum of the 
estimated total cost of the cooperative program; and the Federal 
funds shall be allocated among the States desiring to cooperate 
on an equitable basis. Such cooperation and payment shall be con-
tingent at all times upon the administration of the State program 
in a manner which the Secretary, in consultation with the appro-
priate advisory committee appointed under paragraph (4), deems 
adequate to effectuate the purposes of this section. 
"(4) The Secretary may appoint advisory committees consist-
ing of such representatives of appropriate State agencies as the 
Secretary and the State agencies may designate to consult with 
him concerning State and Federal programs with respect to meat 
inspection and other matters within the scope of this Act, in-
cluding evaluating State programs for purposes of this Act and 
obtaining better coordination and more uniformity among the 
State programs and between the Federal and State programs and 
adequate protection of consumers. 
"(b) The appropriate State agency with which the Secretary may 
cooperate under this Act shall be a single agency in the State which 
is primarily responsible for the coordination of the State programs 
Federal contri-
bution, limitation. 
Publication in 
Federal Register, 
596 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
having objectives similar to those under this Act. When the State 
program includes performance of certain functions by a municipality 
or other subordinate governmental unit, such unit shall be deemed to 
be a part of the State agency for purposes of this section. 
"(c) (1) If the Secretary has reason to believe, by thirty days prior 
to the expiration of two years after enactment of the Wholesome Meat 
Act, that a State has failed to develop or is not enforcing, with 
respect to all establishments within its jurisdiction 
(except those 
that would be exempted from Federal inspection under subpar-
agraph (2)) at which cattle, sheep, swine, goats, or equines are 
slaughtered, or their carcasses, or parts or products thereof, are pre-
pared for use as human food, solely for distribution within such State, 
and the products of such establishments, requirements at least equal 
^"ost, p! 597! 
to those imposed under title I and IV of this Act, he shall promptly 
notify the Governor of the State of this fact. If the Secretary deter-
mines, after consultation with the Governor of the State, or represent-
ative selected by him, that such requirements have not been devel-
oped and activated, he shall promptly after the expiration of such 
two-year period designate such State as one in which the provisions 
of titles I and IV of this Act shall apply to operations and transac-
tions wholly within such State: Provided^ That if the Secretary has 
reason to believe that the State will activate such requirements within 
one additional year, he may delay such designation for said period, 
and not designate the State, if he determines at the end of the year 
that the State then has such requirements in effective operation. The 
Secretary shall publish any such designation in the Federal Register 
and, upon the expiration of thirty days after such publication, the 
provisions of titles I and IV shall apply to operations and transactions 
and to persons, firms, and corporations engaged therein in the State 
to the same extent and in the same manner as if such operations and 
transactions were conducted in or for commerce. Thereafter, upon 
request of the Governor, the Secretary shall revoke such designation 
if the Secretary determines that such State has developed and will en-
force requirements at least equal to those imposed under title I and 
title IV of this Act: And provided further^ That, notwithstanding any 
other provision of this section, if the Secretary determines that any 
establishment within a State is producing adulterated meat or meat 
food products for distribution within such State which would clearly 
endanger the public health he shall notify the Governor of the State 
and the appropriate Advisory Committee provided by section 301 of 
Ante, p. 595. 
^he Act of such fact for effective action under State or local law. 
If the State does not take action to prevent such endangering of the 
public health within a reasonable time after such notice, as determined 
by the Secretary, in light of the risk to public healtli, the Secretary 
may forthwith designate any such establishment as subject to the pro-
visions of titles I and IV of the Act, and thereupon the establishment 
and operator thereof shall be subect to such provisions as though en-
gaged in commerce until such time as the Secretary determines that 
such State has developed and will enforce requirements at least equal 
to those imposed under title I and title IV of this Act. 
(2) The provisions of this Act requiring inspection of the slaughter 
of animals and the preparation of carcasses, parts thereof, meat and 
meat food products shall not apply to operations of types traditionally 
and usually conducted at retail stores and restaurants, when conducted 
at any retail store or restaurant or similar retail-type establishment 
for sale in normal retail quantities or service of such articles to con-
sumers at such establishments if such establishments are subject to 
such inspection provisions only under this paragraph (c). 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
597 
Ante, 
p. 
Infta. 
State require-
ments, periodic 
review. 
Report .to con-
gressional com-
mittees. 
Post, 
p. 
"State.' 
600. 
(3) Whenever the Secretary determines tliat any State designated 
under this paragraph (c) has developed and will enforce State meat 
inspection requirements at least equal to those imposed under titles I 
and IV, with respect to the operations and transactions within such 
State which are regulated under subparagraph (1), he shall terminate 
the designation of such State under this paragraph (c), but this shall 
not preclude the subsequent redesignation of the State at any time 
upon thirty days notice to the Governor and publication in the Fed-
eral Register in accordance with this paragraph, and any State may 
be designated upon such notice and publication at any time after the 
period specified in this paragraph whether or not the State has there-
tofore been designated upon the Secretary determining that it is not 
effectively enforcing requirements at least equal to those imposed under 
titles I and IV. 
(4) The Secretary shall promptly upon enactment of the Whole-
some Meat Act and periodically thereafter, but at least annually, 
review the requirements, including the enforcement thereof, of the 
several States not designated under this paragraph (c), with respect 
to the slaughter, and the preparation, storage, handling and distribu-
tion of carcasses, parts thereof, meat and meat food products, of such 
animals, and inspection of such operations, and annually report thereon 
to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Agriculture and Forestry of the Senate in the report 
required under section 17 of the Wholesome Meat Act. 
"(d) As used in this section, the term 'State' means any State (in-
cluding the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico) or organized Territory." 
SEC. 16. Said Act is hereby further amended by adding after title 
I I I thereof, the following new sections as: 
"TITLE IV—AUXILIARY PROVISIONS 
"SEC. 401. The Secretary may (for such period, or indefinitely, as se1?wcV"with-*'°" 
he deems necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Act) refuse to drawai.' 
provide, or withdraw, inspection service under title I of this Act with 
respect to any establishment if he determines, after opportunity for 
a hearing is accorded to the applicant for, or recipient of, such service, 
that such applicant or recipient is unfit to engage in any business re-
quiring inspection under title I because the applicant or recipient, or 
anyone responsibly connected with the applicant or recipient, has been 
convicted, in any Federal or State court, of (1) any felony, or (2) 
more than one violation of any law, other than a felony, based upon the 
acquiring, handling, or distributing of unwholesome, mislabeled, or 
deceptively packaged food or upon fraud in connection with transac-
tions in food. This section shall not affect in any way other provisions 
of this Act for withdrawal of inspection services under title I from 
establishments failing to maintain sanitary conditions or to destroy 
condemned carcasses, parts, meat or meat food products. 
"For the purpose of this section a person shall be deemed to be 
responsibly connected with the business if he was a partner, officer, 
director, holder, or owner of 10 per centum or more of its voting stock 
or employee in a managerial or executive capacity. 
"The determination and order of the Secretary with respect thereto 
under this section shall be final and conclusive unless the affected ap-
plicant for, or recipient of, inspection service files application for 
judicial review within thirty days after the effective date of such order 
in the appropriate court as provided in section 404. Judicial review 
of any such order shall be upon the record upon which the determina-
tion and order are based. 
Post, 
p. 599. 
598 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
Administrative 
detention of cer-
tain meat, etc. 
Seizure or con-
demnation. 
"SEC. 402. Whenever any carcass, part of a carcass, meat or meat 
food product of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules, or other 
equines, or any product exempted from the definition of a meat food 
product, or any dead, dying, disabled, or diseased cattle, sheep, swine, 
goat, or equine is found by any authorized representative of the Sec-
retary upon any premises where it is held for purposes of, or during 
or after distribution in, commerce or otherwise subject to title I or I I 
of this Act, and there is reason to believe that any such article is adul-
terated or misbranded and is capable of use as human food, or that it 
has not been inspected, in violation of the provisions of title I of this 
Act or of any other Federal law or the laws of any State or Territory, 
or the District of Columbia, or that such article or animal has been 
or is intended to be, distributed in violation of any such provisions, 
it may be detained by such representative for a period not to exceed 
twenty days, pending action under section 403 of this Act or notifica-
tion of any Federal, State, or other governmental authorities having 
jurisdiction over such article or animal, and shall not be moved by 
any person, firm, or corporation from the place at which it is located 
when so detained, until released by such representative. All official 
marks may be req^uired by such representative to be removed from 
such article or animal before it is released unless it appears to the 
satisfaction of the Secretary that the article or animal is eligible to 
retain such marks. 
"SEC. 403. (a) Any carcass, part of a carcass, meat or meat food 
product of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules or other equines, 
or any dead, dying, disabled, or diseased cattle, sheep, swine, goat, 
or equine, that is being transported in commerce or otherwise sub-
ject to title I or I I of this Act, or is held for sale in the United States 
after such transportation, and that (1) is or has been prepared, sold, 
transported, or otherwise distributed or offered or received for dis-
tribution in violation of this Act, or (2) is capable of use as human 
food and is adulterated or misbranded, or (3) in any other way is in 
violation of this xVct, shall be liable to be proceeded against and 
seized and condemned, at any time, on a libel of information in any 
United States district court or other proper court as provided in sec-
tion 404 of this Act within the jurisdiction of which the article or 
animal is found. If the article or animal is condemned it shall, after 
entry of the decree, be disposed of by destruction or sale as the court 
may direct and the proceeds, if sold, less the court costs and fees, and 
storage and other proper expenses, shall be paid into the Treasury 
of the United States, but the article or animal shall not be sold con-
trary to the provisions of this Act, or the laws of the jurisdiction in 
which it is sold: Provided^ That upon the execution and delivery 
of a good and sufficient bond conditioned that the article or animal 
shall not be sold or otherwise disposed of contrary to the provisions 
of this Act, or the laws of the jurisdiction in which disposal is made, 
the court may direct that such article or animal be delivered to the 
owner thereof subject to such supervision by authorized representa-
tives of the Secretary as is necessary to insure compliance with the ap-
plicable laws. When a decree of condemnation is entered against the 
article or animal and it is released under bond, or destroyed, court 
costs and fees, and storage and other proper expenses shall be awarded 
against the person, if any, intervening as claimant of the article or 
animal. The proceedings in such libel cases shall conform, as nearly as 
may be, to the proceedings in admirality, except that either party 
may demand trial by jury of any issue of fact joined in any case, and 
all such proceedings shall be at the suit of and in the name of the 
United States. 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
599 
"(b) The provisions of this section shall in no way derogate from 
authority for condemnation or seizure conferred by other provisions 
of this Act, or other laws. 
"SEC. 404. The United States district courts, the District Court of 
Guam, the District Court of the Virgin Islands, the highest court of 
American Samoa, and the United States courts of the other Terri-
tories, are vested with jurisdiction specifically to enforce, and to pre-
vent and restrain violations of, this Act, and shall have jurisdiction 
in all other kinds of cases arising under this Act, except as provided 
in section 7(e) of this Act. 
"SEC. 405. Any person who forcibly assaults, resists, opposes, 
impedes, intimidates, or interferes with any person while engaged in or 
on account of the performance of his official duties under this Act 
shall be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more than three 
years, or both. Whoever, in the commission of any such acts, uses a 
deadly or dangerous weapon, shall be fined not more than $10,000 or 
imprisoned not more than ten years, or both. Whoever kills any per-
son while engaged in or on account of the performance of his official 
duties under this Act shall be punished as provided under sections 
1111 and 1114 of title 18, United States Code. 
"SEC. 406. (a) Any person, firm, or corporation who violates any 
provision of this Act for which no other criminal penalty is provided 
by this Act shall upon conviction be subject to imprisonment for not 
more than one year, or a fine of not more than $1,000, or both such 
imprisonment and fine; but if such violation involves intent to de-
fraud, or any distribution or attempted distribution of an article that 
is adulterated (except as defined in section 1 (m) (8) of this Act), such 
person, firm, or corporation shall be subject to imprisonment for not 
more than three years or a fine of not more than $10,000, or both: 
Provided^ That no person, firm, or corporation, shall be subject to 
penalties under this section for receiving for transportation any arti-
cle or animal in violation of this Act if such receipt was made in good 
faith, unless such person, firm, or corporation refuses to furnish on 
request of a representative of the Secretary the name and address of 
the person from whom he received such article or animal, and copies 
of all documents, if any there be, pertaining to the delivery of the 
article or animal to him. 
"(b) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as requiring the Secre-
tary to report for prosecution or for the institution of libel or injunc-
tion proceedings, minor violations of this Act w^henever he believes 
that the public interest will be adequately served by a suitable written 
notice of warning. 
"SEC. 407. For the efficient administration and enforcement of this 
Act, the provisions (including penalties) of sections 6, 8, 9, and 10 
of the Act entitled 'An Act to create a Federal Trade Commission, to 
define its powers and duties, and for other purposes', approved Sep-
tember 26, 1914 (38 Stat. 721-723, as amended; 15 U.S.C. 46, 48, 49, 
and 50) (except paragraphs (c) through (h) of section 6 and the last 
paragraph of section 9), and the provisions of subsection 409 (1) of the 
Communications Act of 1934 (48 Stat. 1096, as amended; 47 U.S.C. 
409(1)), are made applicable to the jurisdiction, powers, and duties of 
the Secretary in administering and enforcing the provisions of this 
Act and to any person, firm, or corporation with respect to whom such 
authority is exercised. The Secretary, in person or by such agents as 
he may designate, may prosecute any inquiry necessary to his duties 
under this Act in any part of the United States, and the powers con-
ferred by said sections 9 and 10 of the Act of September 26, 1914, as 
amended, on the district courts of the United States may be exercised 
Courts, jurisdic-
tion. 
Ante, 
p. 589. 
Violations. 
62 Stat. 756. 
65 Stat. 721. 
Ante, 
p. 586. 
66 Stat. 722. 
600 
PUBLIC LAW 90-201-DEC. 15, 1967 
[81 STAT. 
States, juris-
diction. 
Ante, p. 584. 
Ante, p. 593. 
52 Stat. 1059. 
Ante, p. 598. 
21 use 301. 
Appropriation. 
Report to con-
gressional com-
mittees. 
Repeals. 
for the purposes of this Act by any court designated in section 404 of 
this Act. 
"SEC. 408. Requirements within the scope of this Act with respect 
to premises, facilities and operations of any establishment at which 
inspection is provided under title I of this Act, which are in addition 
to, or different than those made under this Act may not be imposed 
by any State or Territory or the District of Columbia, except that 
any such jurisdiction may impose recordkeeping and other require-
ments within the scope of section 202 of this Act, if consistent there-
with, with respect to any such establishment. Marking, labeling, pack-
aging, or ingredient requirements in addition to, or different than, 
those made under this Act may not be imposed by any State or Ter-
ritory or the District of Columbia with respect to articles prepared 
at any establishment under inspection in accordance with the require-
ments under title I of this Act, but any State or Territory or the 
District of Columbia may, consistent with the requirements under 
this Act, exercise concurrent jurisdiction with the Secretary over 
articles required to be inspected under said title, for the purpose of 
preventing the distribution for human food purposes of any such 
articles which are adulterated or misbranded and are outside of such 
an establishment, or, in the case of imported articles which are not at 
such an establishment, after their entry into the United States. This 
Act shall not preclude any State or Territory or the District of 
Columbia from making requirement or taking other action, consistent 
with this Act, with respect to any other matters regulated under this 
Act. 
"SEC. 409. (a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, in-
cluding section 902(b) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act 
(21 U.S.C. 392(a)), the provisions of this Act shall not derogate 
from any authority conferred by the Federal Food, Drug, and Cos-
metic Act prior to enactment of the Wholesome Meat Act. 
"(b) The detainer authority conferred by section 402 of this Act 
shall apply to any authorized representative of the Secretary of 
Health, Education, and Welfare for purposes of the enforcement of 
the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to any carcass, 
part thereof, meat, or meat food product of cattle, sheep, swine, goats, 
or equines that is outside any premises at which inspection is being 
maintained under this Act, and for such purposes the first reference 
to the Secretary in section 402 shall be deemed to refer to the Secretary 
of Health, Education, and Welfare. 
"SEC. 410. There are hereby authorized to be appropriated such 
sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act."' 
SEC. 17. The Secretary shall annually report to the Committee on 
Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Agriculture and Forestry of the Senate with respect to the slaughter 
of animals subject to this Act, and the preparation, storage, handling 
and distribution of carcasses, parts thereof, meat and meat food prod-
ucts, of such animals, and inspection of establishments operated in 
connection therewith, including the operations under and effectiveness 
of this Act. 
SEC. 18. The provisions relating to equine meat and meat food 
products beginning with the phrase "And, hereafter," under the head-
ing "BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY" and the subheading "MEAT 
INSPECTION, BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY :" in the Act approved July 
24, 1919, entitled "An Act making appropriations for the Department 
of Agriculture for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hun-
dred and twenty" (41 Stat. 241; 21 U.S.C. 96), and paragraph (b) of 
81 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 9 0 - 2 0 1 - D E C . 15, 1967 
601 
section 306 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (46 Stat. 689, as amended; 19 
U.S.C. 1306(b)) are hereby repealed. 
SEC. 19. If any provision of this Act or of the amendments made 
separability. 
hereby or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is 
held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the Act and the remain-
ing amendments and of the application of such provision to other 
persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby. 
SEC. 20. This Act shall become effective upon enactment except as 
Effective date. 
provided in paragraphs (a) through (d) : 
(a) The provisions of paragraph (b) (1) and (c) of section 10 and 
the provisions of section 20 of the Federal Meat Inspection Act, as 
amended by sections 7 and 10 of this Act, and the provisions of sec-
tion 18 of this Act repealing paragraph (b) of section 306 of the Tariff 
Act of 1930, shall become etfective upon the expiration of sixty days 
after enactment hereof. 
(b) The provisions of title I of the Federal Meat Inspection Act, 
as amended by this Act, shall become effective with respect to equines 
(other than horses) and their carcasses and parts thereof, meat, and 
meat food products thereof upon the expiration of sixty days after 
enactment hereof. 
(c) Section 11 of this Act, amending section 23, of the Federal Meat 
Inspection Act, shall become effective upon the expiration of sixty 
days after enactment hereof. 
(d) Section 204 of the Federal Meat Inspection Act, as added by 
section 14 of this Act, shall become effective upon the expiration of 
sixty days after enactment hereof. 
Approved December 15, 1967. 
Ante, 
p. 584.